Podcast Summary: Le Cours de l’histoire – "Archéologie, histoire, arts : quatre expositions de l’été"

Podcast: Le Cours de l’histoire (France Culture)
Episode: Archéologie, histoire, arts, quatre expositions de l'été
Host: Xavier Mauduit
Date: 20 juin 2025

Overview: The Summer of Exhibitions in France

This episode is a sweeping conversation on four major French exhibitions for the summer, spanning archaeology, history, and art. The host, Xavier Mauduit, brings together curators and museum directors from across France to highlight the richness and diversity of the country's cultural events during the holiday season. Museums featured include the Musée d’Archéologie Nationale (Saint-Germain-en-Laye), Maison Vacquerie-Musée Victor Hugo (Villequier), Musée Saint-Raymond (Toulouse), and Bibliothèque Musée Inguimbertine (Carpentras).

The focus is on how these exhibitions offer not just objects but experiences: connections to place, people, and the very act of transmission—making history and art relevant and accessible to all.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Cultural Foisonnement: Why Visit Exhibitions in Summer?

• Summer in France is marked by a burst of cultural activities.
• Expositions are seen as an opportunity for surprising discoveries, not just in big cities but in smaller towns—with offerings from both institutions and private initiatives.
• The pleasure lies in serendipity: “Le grand plaisir, vous savez, d’acheter le journal du coin, de regarder, tiens, qu’est-ce qu’on pourrait aller voir…” (00:15)

2. Musée d’Archéologie Nationale (Saint-Germain-en-Laye): "Les Maîtres du feu – l’Âge du bronze en France"

Guest: Clémy Mauduit, conservatrice générale du patrimoine

Exhibition Focus and Challenges

• Highlight: A major exhibition on the often-overlooked Bronze Age in France (2300-800 BC).
• Purpose: To move beyond beautiful but isolated objects and contextualize the era for the public.

Key Content and Innovations

• Partnerships: Collaboration with INRAP and APRAP to dig into new findings.
• Experimental Archaeology: Living demonstrations (with Coubertin foundry) attempted to recreate Bronze Age artifacts, revealing the extraordinary skill required.
• Pedagogy and Mediation: The curatorial team ("commissaires") worked with illustrator Pierre-Yves Vidalier to produce immediate and accessible visuals, making the period less abstract and more relatable.

Insightful Quote:

• “Réaliser une cuirasse de l’âge du bronze avec les méthodes des bronziers de l’époque, c’est très très difficile.” – Clémy Mauduit (09:24)

Additional Experiences

• Permanent galleries, including Bronze and Iron Age rooms (03:43); partial closures due to renovations (04:00).
• Outdoor installations: visitors can touch ancient crops and learn about Bronze Age agriculture in the château gardens (54:00+).

3. Maison Vacquerie-Musée Victor Hugo (Villequier): "Aime celui qui t’aime – Léopoldine Hugo"

Guests: Xavier Mauduit (curator), Caroline Dorion-Péronnet

Exhibition Focus and Emotional Resonance

• Occasion: Bicentenary of Léopoldine Hugo, Victor Hugo’s daughter.
• Immersion: Scenography by Jean Haute aims to bring alive the world of Léopoldine, Victor Hugo, and the Vacquerie family.
• Objects: Exceptional loans—her wedding crown, the dress she drowned in—chosen for their profound emotional impact.
• Documents: Manuscript of Victor Hugo’s poem “Aime celui qui t’aime”.

The Power of Place

• The exhibition fills the entire maison, enhancing narrative power by being “in situ”—the true site of Léopoldine’s life, marriage, and tragic death, as well as family burials in the village cemetery.

Memorable Moment:

• The recitation of Victor Hugo’s poem “Maintenant que Paris” (14:30) brings palpable emotion, tying literature to lived reality.
• “Ce lieu a vraiment du sens par rapport à l’histoire qu’on va raconter.” – Xavier Mauduit (52:00)

Editorial Mission

• Balancing emotional content with rigorous narrative, careful mediation, and scenographic restraint (32:25+).
• The exhibition encourages exploration of the village itself and the Hugo/Vacquerie family cemetery.

4. Musée Saint-Raymond (Toulouse): "Sortie de boîte. Trésor de réserve"

Guest: Laure Barthez, directrice

Exhibition Approach: Humor & Accessibility

• Eclectic Journey: Objects from Toulouse, Italy, Egypt, the Caucasus, spanning from the Bronze Age to Early Modern times, often unseen “treasures from the reserves”.
• Educational Challenge: The exhibition uses humor and playful mediation to help visitors leap between distant epochs and regions.
• Reuse and Sustainability: The previous exhibition's scenography was repurposed, an act of both sustainability and curatorial ingenuity (44:57).

Key Quote:

• “On essaye de rendre l’archéologie, qui peut paraître parfois un peu âpre, plus accessible… On a pris le biais de l’humour.” – Laure Barthez (24:03)

Notable Artifacts

• Two processional/funeral bronze chariot wheels—one loaned to the Musée d’Archéologie Nationale; the other displayed in Toulouse.
• A granitic portrait of Hatshepsut, medieval jewelry, and fragments from the lost Château des Comtes de Toulouse.

Linking Disciplines

• Emphasis placed on seeing historic periods not as “blocks” but as overlapping, interconnected civilizations (29:08).

5. Bibliothèque Musée Inguimbertine (Carpentras): "Duplessis, l’art de peindre la vie"

Guest: Jean-Yves Baudouy, directeur

Exhibition and Site

• Location: An encyclopedic museum-library, recently moved to the Hôtel Dieu, itself a historic hospital.
• The Exhibition: Celebrates the 300th anniversary of Joseph-Siffred Duplessis, renowned portraitist of Louis XVI and Benjamin Franklin, whose portrait graces the US $100 bill.
• Archival Depth: The collection contains over 300 illuminated medieval manuscripts, incunabula, and the extensive Peresque humanist archive.

Exhibition Process

• Building the Exhibition: Convincing lenders in France and abroad; three years of preparation involved (44:05).
• Conservation: Every piece exhibited is reviewed and restored if necessary (46:29).

Memorable Insight:

• “L’histoire de l’art, regardez la qualité esthétique de ses portraits.”—Jean-Yves Baudouy (47:22)
• The show’s narrative highlights Duplessis’ range: from official court portraits to intimate provincial commissions acclaimed in Diderot’s salon critiques.

Notable Quotes and Moments

• On the Difficulty of Archaeological Mediation:
  “La roue de char est un des éléments marquants de cette exposition, mais ce n’est pas le seul… On fait partager un rêve aussi dans une exposition.” – Clémy Mauduit (31:01)
• On the Emotional Responsibility of Curation:
  “L’idée, c’est qu’il y aura une émotion générale, une perception… réussir à lier à la fois cet effet scénographique et émotionnel avec des éléments de discours et d’histoire.” – Xavier Mauduit (32:25)
• On Exploring Museums Beyond Exhibits:
  “Visiter une exposition, ce n’est pas uniquement être devant des œuvres… c’est une expérience, un moment à apprécier et à partager.” – Jean-Yves Baudouy (50:30)
• On Cultural Access:
  “Rentrer dans un musée, ça peut faire peur… pleins de raisons… Nous, on a choisi l’entrée par l’humour… l’archéologie c’est compliqué quand même.” – Laure Barthez (55:43)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:09] Bronze Age exhibition at Saint-Germain-en-Laye introduced
• [05:47] Definition and implications of the Bronze Age
• [09:15] Details of exhibited Bronze Age objects, and experimental archaeology
• [12:46] Maison Victor Hugo/Vacquerie at Villequier discussed
• [14:30] Reading of Victor Hugo’s poetry
• [24:03] “Sortie de boîte” exhibition concept in Toulouse
• [27:54] Collaboration and artifact loans between museums
• [32:25] Balancing emotion and spectacle in immersive exhibitions
• [34:47] The Inguimbertine’s origins and significance in Carpentras
• [41:46] Exhibition on Duplessis—artistic and logistical challenges
• [50:30] The museum visit as a whole experience—beyond the exhibit

Flow and Takeaway

This episode is rich in behind-the-scenes insight and personal passion. The curators’ voices animate not just their exhibitions, but the art of making history and heritage feel urgent, inclusive, and vibrant. Each institution—be it a grand château, a reconfigured hospital, or a riverside village house—becomes itself a character in the storytelling.

Above all, the episode argues that visiting exhibitions is about more than objects: it is about places, people, memory, and the lived experience of history and art made tangible. Museums work as gateways—if you dare to push the door, you're rewarded not just with knowledge, but with moments of connection, emotion, and discovery.

Further Exploration

• Musée d’Archéologie Nationale (Saint-Germain-en-Laye): "Les Maîtres du feu – l’Âge du bronze en France"
• Maison Vacquerie-Musée Victor Hugo (Villequier): "Aime celui qui t’aime, Léopoldine Hugo"
• Musée Saint-Raymond (Toulouse): "Sortie de boîte. Trésor de réserve"
• Bibliothèque Musée Inguimbertine (Carpentras): "Joseph-Siffred Duplessis, l’art de peindre la vie"

“Achetez la presse locale. Quand on arrive quelque part… parfois, on va tomber émerveillé par une exposition d’art, d’histoire, d’archéologie.” – Host (56:54)

This summary captures the episode’s major themes, key discussions, and unforgettable moments for anyone eager to explore the French summer via its museums and exhibitions.