Works of art instead of advertisements in around twenty cities in France

ART – « Beauty will save the world “. This sentence from Fyodor Dostoyevsky inspired the mayor of Saint-Dizier in Haute-Marne, in full confinement linked to Covid in 2020. While the French are locked up at home and no longer have access to museums, Quentin Brière has the idea to put art under the noses of the inhabitants of his municipality: on advertising panels and bus shelters.

A project that he is implementing in 2021 and which has now grown, since 23 cities will follow the movement, he announces to West France this Sunday, October 20. In 2023, sixty works by Van Gogh, Monet and even Hokusai could be admired by passers-by, in Saint-Dizier, but also in other towns.

“This year, we are changing the scale and already 23 cities of around 1,000 to 100,000 inhabitants representing eleven regions will participate for three weeks between November 14 and December 3”explains the councilor. Among them, as you can see in the map below, large cities like Reims (Marne), Bourges (Cher) Châteauroux (Indre), Agen (Lot-et-Garonne) or Bourg-en-Bresse (Ain) but also smaller ones like Talmont-Saint-Hilaire (Vendée), Lamontjoie (Lot-et-Garonne) or Montfermeil (Seine-Saint-Denis).

A movement that the mayor of Saint-Dizier would like to see expand further in 2025, with the help of the Ministry of Culture.

As for the works displayed in the streets, West France explains that they are provided by the Grand Palais-Réunion des musées nationaux. This transfers the copyright to the amount of 56 euros per painting. Didier Fusillier, the president of the institution, hopes “that we can do even less to amplify the movement, because it is important and striking to be surrounded by art in public space.”

Also see on The HuffPost: