DIJON: The exhibition “Bas les Masques” in place at the Museum of Fine Arts until October 18
The exhibition was produced by people detained from the central house of Saint-Maur. The Dijon Museum of Fine Arts is hosting this exhibition in partnership with the Louvre Museum and illustrates strong links with the prison administration.
Opening of the exhibition Bas les Masques at the Museum of Fine Arts
Wednesday September 29, early evening, Christine Martin, deputy mayor, delegate for culture, entertainment and festivals, Pascal Vion, interregional director of prison services in Dijon and Joël Jallet, functional director of the SPIP of Côte-d ‘ Or proceeded to the opening of the exhibition “Bas les Masques”, produced by the detainees of the central house of Saint-Maur, in partnership with the Louvre museum, and presented at the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Dijon until October 18.
The Louvre has been working in penitentiary establishments since 2008, offering cultural activities for detained persons. These actions aim to guarantee everyone, wherever they are, access to the national collections and bear witness to the Louvre’s desire to reach out to all its audiences.
Accompanied by the association Les Musiques de la Boulangère, ten people detained from the central house of Saint-Maur (Indre) have therefore built, with Le Louvre, an exhibition of reproductions of works from the museum’s collections. As co-curators of this exhibition, the detainees participated in all stages of the project: definition of the theme, choice of works, scenography and writing of the introductory text.
Hosted in the ducal kitchens of the Dijon Museum of Fine Arts, this exhibition is the translation of the exemplary partnership that has united the prison administration and the city since 2014.
For more than seven years, the city of Dijon and its cultural structures with people detained in the Dijon remand center, and people followed in an open environment by the SPIP of Côte-d’Or. Costume design with the Dijon Opera, artist interviews with La Vapeur, design of a temporary exhibition with the FRAC, performance at the Feuillants theater as part of the Nuits d’Orient… there are many examples of cultural actions with people held in Dijon remand center.
At the opening of the exhibition “Bas les Masques”, Christine Martin, deputy mayor, testifies that “the municipality understands the prison as a district of the city of Dijon”. By systematically involving the penal population in its cultural programming, the Dijon town hall wishes to promote “culture for all audiences”.
This Wednesday evening, the interregional director of the prison services of Dijon, Pascal Vion, recalls that “the city of Dijon is a faithful partner of the prison administration; hosting this exhibition here is the perfect example. Whether through cultural projects or supporting people sentenced to community service or placed on external sites, this partnership is exemplary and I want to be happy to see that we have this municipality to develop. even more and to make it sustainable ”.
Comments supported by those of Joël Jallet, functional director of the SPIP of Côte-d’Or: “the municipality welcomes many people condemned to TIG in its swimming pools, technical services or schools; she is also present to accompany the children of women imprisoned in the remand center, in particular with the Voltaire crèche. Finally, people are accommodated in external placements, responsible for renovating and maintaining Dijon’s heritage; the example of the renovation of the surrounding wall of Parc de la Colombière, supervised by the Sentiers association, is a perfect illustration ”.
The exhibition “Bas les Masques” is presented to the public from September 27 to October 18, ducal kitchen of the Museum of Fine Arts.
Communicated