France

Feeling fragile? Lyon Biennale returns after a three-year break and forges ties to the city and its past

Works by more than 200 artists are on show across French city, in sites that range from Renaissance courtyards to a former household appliance factory

French art dealer Didier Wormser stands trial for trafficking looted Egyptian antiquities

Owner of L’Etoile d’Ishtar gallery said artefacts from Saqqara necropolis “should be restituted to Egypt” but insists he purchased them in good faith

Booksreview

New book reveals how women artists in the 'Age of Revolutions' confound stereotypes

This statistics-driven investigation shows that many of the hundreds of women exhibiting in London and Paris between 1760 and 1830 eschewed the still-life

Antiquities trafficking case escalates as Louvre Abu Dhabi joins civil action and Swiss collector files criminal complaint

In wake of scandal involving former Louvre director, France's culture minister forms taskforce to assess acquisitions procedures at museums

Eight men accused of stealing a Banksy from the Bataclan concert hall in Paris go on trial

The crooks removed the mural that was painted on an emergency exit door of the Parisian concert hall, though there is disagreement over who ordered the theft

What has happened to France’s grand plans to return Africa's heritage?

Five years ago President Macron took the museum world by surprise when he announced a then-revolutionary restitution plan. Now the country’s politicians are at odds about how to implement it

President Macron appoints Rima Abdul Malak as France’s new minister of culture

Culture pass, restitution issues and metaverse will be on her agenda

Podcastspodcast

Macron wins: what now for the French art scene?

Plus, Walter Sickert at Tate Britain and Gordon Parks at the Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh

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Politicsanalysis

French elections: what's at stake for culture and the arts?

As Macron and Le Pen face off in the second round of the presidential battle, cultural policy is likely to continue taking a back seat

French pavilion: Once-banned movie about Algerian war of independence inspires cinematic installation

Artist Zineb Sedira puts Algerian film under the spotlight, as country marks 60 years as a sovereign state

Loansnews

France seeks to protect Russia's Morozov collection from seizure as masterpieces return home

Works were on loan to a blockbuster exhibition at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris

Versailles restores Royal Tennis Court—where French democracy was founded—to its former glory

Modern-day politicians in France's National Assembly helped to crowdfund the €1.8m restoration at the Château de Versailles

French museums survived a drastic fall in tourism but may face uphill struggle as state support dries up

France’s status as a honeypot for tourists from Asia and the US has taken a huge hit, from which its cultural institutions are still reeling. Now the country’s museums hope that French and European visitors can restore their finances

French museums rally to protect art collections in Ukraine with truckload of emergency supplies

A delivery of 15 tonnes of donated packing and conservation materials was organised by Icom France

Rising sea levels imperil French church that inspired the Impressionists, including Monet

Coastal erosion in Normandy means that the Saint-Valery church in Varengeville-sur-Mer may soon disappear

France launches €1m fund to help Ukrainian and ‘dissident Russian’ artists fleeing war

Culture ministry initiative will offer three-month residencies and an emergency telephone service

Restitutionanalysis

Why Macron's radical promise to return African treasures has stalled

Four years after a landmark pledge to hand back colonial loot, French government has opposed a new restitution bill backed by the Senate

Rediscovered Bernhard Strigel painting found in a Toulouse home expected to sell for up to €800,000

The panel is thought to be the pair of Strigel's Thurifer Angel, which was bought by the Louvre Abu Dhabi in Paris in 2008

Louvre's attendance last year dropped to 1986 levels

Covid continued to impact on French museum visits, but the government provided a much-needed financial safety net

Booksreview

Remarkable new book reveals the dark side of the Sun King

'The Sun King at Sea' shows how Louis XIV, known for his long reign, and cultural and political power, was also a cruel slave-keeper

Macron's Gulf tour: UAE's Louvre Abu Dhabi contract extended to 2047 and more French-Saudi culture deals

Renewal of Abu Dhabi deal means the Louvre can partner with the network of museums planned for Saudi Arabia's AlUla region

Catholic church's proposed redesign of Notre Dame interior provokes outrage

Plans to revamp the fire-ravaged cathedral with contemporary art and multilingual projections of Bible quotes have been compared to Disneyland

'Taliban-like minority working to undermine the Western world': uproar after French Academy in Rome moves to remove tapestries linked to colonialism

After a media campaign, French art historians and scholars sign a petition accusing the Villa Medici of "cancelling culture"

Beninnews

Benin pushes for 'full restitution' as 26 looted objects destined to return to the country go on show at the Quai Branly in Paris

A farewell exhibition, due to be visited by French President Emmanuel Macron this week, is being hosted at the French museum. But the West African nation is "not satisfied" with the partial restitution

France launches Islamic art shows across 18 cities to combat rising Islamophobia

The Louvre-led government initiative aims to shatter clichés and encourage a deeper understanding

A sneak peek at France's first cultural venue celebrating stained glass

The Cité du Vitrail will open in the medieval town of Troyes in spring 2022, but preview tours are running this weekend for the European Heritage Days

Emma Lavigne named chief executive officer of the Pinault Collection

Former head of the Palais de Tokyo in Paris replaces Jean-Jacques Aillagon