The gallery was founded in 1966 by Daniel Templon, who was only 21 years old at the time. It first opened rue Bonaparte, in Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris, before moving in 1972 to its current location, rue Beaubourg, in the Marais, near the Centre Pompidou, which opened in 1977. Daniel Templon first became known by exhibiting conceptual and minimal artists such as Martin Barré, Christian Boltanski, Donald Judd, Joseph Kosuth, Richard Serra. In the 70s and 80s, Daniel Templon was one of the pioneers of contemporary art and introduced the French public to many important American artists: Dan Flavin, Ellsworth Kelly, Willem de Kooning, Frank Stella, Andy Warhol. The gallery quickly became one of the references of contemporary art in France. In 1972, Daniel Templon and Catherine Millet co-founded the art monthly ART PRESS.

Over the years, many artists who have entered the history of art have exhibited at the gallery. In chronological order: Martin Barré, Christian Boltanski, Joseph Kosuth, Ben, Arman, César, Carl Andre, Dan Flavin, Sol LeWitt, Donald Judd, Ellsworth Kelly, Kenneth Noland, Robert Morris, Jules Olitski, Frank Stella, Olivier Mosset, Art & Language, Richard Serra, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Karel Appel, Willem de Kooning, Helmut Newton, Francesco Clemente, Jörg Immendorff, Julian Schnabel, Lawrence Weiner, Daniel Buren, Jean-Michel Basquiat, David Salle, Robert Mapplethorpe, Robert Rauschenberg, Joel Shapiro, Keith Haring, Peter Halley, James Rosenquist, Robert Longo, Paul Rebeyrolle, Georg Baselitz, Raymond Hains, Eric Fischl, Juan Uslé, Jaume Plensa, George Condo, Ross Bleckner, the Chapman brothers, Jim Dine, Richard Long, William Eggleston, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Yayoi Kusama, Richard Deacon, Larry Bell, Guillermo Kuitca, Anthony Caro, Pierre and Gilles.

Today, Galerie TEMPLON represents a group of international artists. The program fosters dialogue between generations: established artists, mid-career international artists, and the experiences of young artists. The gallery also provides curatorial expertise and assistance in mounting exhibitions of its artists in museums or international exhibitions. Several of its artists have participated in international exhibitions such as the Venice Biennale, Documenta, the Whitney Biennale, etc.
Galerie TEMPLON is involved in the production of its artists and is committed to a strong editorial policy with the publication of exhibition catalogues. It has three spaces: two exhibition spaces in Paris (30 rue Beaubourg and 28 rue du Grenier Saint-Lazare), one in Brussels, Belgium and one in New York (Chelsea). The gallery participates in art fairs around the world, including FIAC since 1974 and ART BASEL since 1978.

The history of Galerie TEMPLON is now the subject of a book by historian Julie Verlaine "Daniel Templon: a history of contemporary art" published by Flammarion in 2016.