The French capital stayed up until the wee hours of Sunday as Parisians marked “Nuit Blanche” – literally “sleepless night” – an annual nocturnal celebration of contemporary art.

A giant screen outside the magnificently illuminated City Hall building drew crowds.Marie-Sophie Joubert Music, dancing, art and a touch of romance at a Nuit Blanche gathering. Marie-Sophie Joubert At a metro station: art in transitionMarie-Sophie Joubert Cutting-edge art at the new '104' contemporary art and culture centre in eastern ParisMarie-Sophie Joubert Hamming it up or simply interacting with the artMarie-Sophie Joubert An artist working on a giant meringue screen takes a break at the landmark Pompidou Centre.Marie-Sophie Joubert A heartbeat away from the heart of the cityMarie-Sophie Joubert Inside the historic Notre Dame cathedralMarie-Sophie Joubert Blending the old with the avant-gardeMarie-Sophie Joubert A giant screen in a church displays images of an airport arrivals terminalMarie-Sophie Joubert Edible chocolate mannequinsMarie-Sophie Joubert It's all in the detail: up close with a chocolate mannequin Marie-Sophie Joubert The art party continued into the wee hours of SundayMarie-Sophie Joubert

The eighth annual Nuit Blanche festival was expected to attract about 1.5 million people, according to Christophe Girard, deputy mayor of Paris.

“If the current trend continues, we should have slightly more people this year than the previous year,” Girard told the AFP news service shortly before midnight.

While public viewings of art installations across the city began Saturday around 7pm, most visitors on this special night opt to view the installations toward midnight.

Giant green laser beam

Shortly after sundown on Saturday, queues of visitors were snaking at the entrance of the Luxembourg gardens in the historic Latin Quarter as well as the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont in eastern Paris.

The Latin Quarter and the central Chatelet-Marais areas have traditionally showcased contemporary art installations on this special night. This year’s Nuit Blanche also featured a number of showings in the north-eastern 19th arondissement, which houses a number of contemporary art studios.

The highlight of the eighth annual Nuit Blanche was a giant green laser beam launched by composer Jean Michel Jarre from the 14th arondissement in southern Paris, which was visible for around 5.5 kilometres right up to the heights of the Montmartre area in northern Paris.

Every year, the all-night art party winds down at around 7am on Sunday.