For almost 3000 years, embroidery has been part of Man’s determination to embellish his immediate environment. Originally suppliers to Napoleon III, the Micholet, and later Lesage families have been embroidering since 1868.

Jean-Michel Othoniel’s work takes on a variety of expressive forms – drawings, sculptures, photographs and video. This famous contemporary artist has created an outstanding new work, “The Precious Stonewall” in collaboration with Indian glassmakers from Firozabad for ‘Bonjour India’.

In this exhibition created by Le Pavillon de l’Arsenal, 30 international architects, including Thom Mayne, Jean Nouvel, Dominique Perrault, SANAA, explore sustainable architectural practises. Eminent French and Indian architects and city planners will discuss these issues too.

Widely exhibited, reproduced, borrowed and collected – Bernard Faucon’s works are one of the most original collections of the late 20th century. He is one of the first artists who has explored the universe of staged photography – the photographic “mise en scène”.

In the wake of the graffiti movement, urban artists make use of paint as well as posters, stencils and installations, to create their own personal pictorial style.“Active Surfaces… art in urban space” unites the main players of Street Art in France – and brings them to India.

“French photographer Olivier Culmann, clicks people watching TV. He captures that instant when consciousness drifts, drugged by the phosphorescence of the cathode tubes. Nothing is more banal and unsettling. This is how, in this quasi-immobile passivity, with a numbed brain that television viewers receive the world in its entirety.” – Cécile Cazenave, Journalist

Iconic French designs recognised internationally will be showcased as a testimony to French creativity and aesthetics.

This exhibition presents the work of several Reunion Island Artists. Deeply anchored in the reality of today’s contemporary art, the work also bears a strong connection with history, forgotten stories, migrations as well as encounters, exchanges and cross breeding.

This audio-visual and interactive installation in urban public spaces will be a platform for work created by a variety of artists from varying cultural backgrounds.

A Museum (theatre) is an interactive installation conceived by French stage director Clyde Chabot. Inspired by Heiner Müller’s play Hamlet-Machine, this project is an attempt to incorporate each person’s individual story into larger history. Visitors become Hamlet or Ophelia as they create their own self-portrait. They choose a 20th century historical picture, which is projected onto a large screen, and one (or several) word(s) taken from Heiner Müller’s play –words either in English or in Malayalam translation.

The Alliance Française de Bhopal and Bharat Bhavan in association with the French Embassy in India are delighted to present in Bhopal during Bonjour India – Festival of France this significant exhibition of unique black and white photographs by French photographer Pierre de Vallombreuse whose work follows Claude Lévi- Strauss’s tradition of commitment to the survival of the indigenous people.

Nadine le Prince is a renowned French painter born into a family of artists. For her outstanding works she was awarded the most prestigious international prizes such as the Monaco prize in 1983. Nadine Le Prince is brilliantly restoring a haveli in Fatehpur, Rajasthan.

After having spent three months in India - closely observing, interacting and immersing themselves in the life here, eight young artists present their impressions of India through as photography, sculpture, collages, paintings and installation, in eight personal projects, as eight rhizomic plateaus, in which they express a few possibilities of interpretation of the Indian reality.

Alliance Française d’Ahmedabad and SEWA (the biggest women NGO in India helping the tribes of Gujarat) have come together to showcase the savoir- faire of traditional embroideries of the tribes of Kutch and the talent of two European designers. From this collaboration a collection of garments and home products was born. In the beautiful venue of Kanoria centre for arts, located on the CEPT campus, a fashion show will take place, unveiling the installation created by the sculptor Corinne Forget. The event will be followed by a gala dinner.

MeTaMap web application is proposing a digital map where every registered person can geolocalise multimedia contributions in order to deliver his or her perception of the area. Users can then take a tour across this map, visit and experience a city through the eyes and ears of other people.