{"id":21903,"date":"2026-10-23T15:32:39","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T15:32:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/monumentafrica-how-art-transforms-places\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T15:33:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T15:33:21","slug":"monumentafrica-how-art-transforms-places","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/en\/monumentafrica-how-art-transforms-places\/","title":{"rendered":"Monument&#8217;Africa: How Art Transforms Places"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"21903\" class=\"elementor elementor-21903 elementor-21876\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-29e0217 e-flex e-con-boxed e-con e-parent\" data-id=\"29e0217\" data-element_type=\"container\" data-e-type=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"e-con-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-12636bf elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"12636bf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Collector Rodolphe Blavy creates a dialogue between contemporary African art and the heritage of a village in Touraine. This year, the MONUMENT\u2019AFRICA exhibition explores permanence, memory, and movement. It is a unique experience in which sharing a collection takes on its full meaning.  <\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-150ac73 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"150ac73\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21894\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA, Bianca Bondi\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-2-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Bianca Bondi<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3169ec6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"3169ec6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b065859 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"b065859\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Certain experiences remind us why, after so many years spent mingling with artists, visiting exhibitions, museums, and art fairs, we can still be deeply moved by an encounter with a work of art and a place.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Saint-\u00c9pain, a village in Touraine, Rodolphe Blavy has been on a remarkable journey for the past three years. A high-ranking civil servant and passionate collector of contemporary African art, he decided to move part of his collection out of his home and display it in the heart of the village. In the church, at the town museum, and in a former wooden theater. And, a little further away, in the castle\u2019s stables.   <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every year, he comes up with a theme, selects about thirty works, and draws connections between them. He takes the time to reflect on what they might convey together, and what they might contribute to these spaces and to those who visit them. This process of selection, installation, and interpretation is the very essence of curatorial work. It requires an intimate knowledge of the artworks, as well as a curiosity about the history of the buildings that house them.   <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the Church of Saint-\u00c9pain, a crucified Christ engages in a dialogue with a soaring figure by Ndary Lo. Two presences, two stories, but also two ways of exploring the human condition, suffering, and transcendence. This unexpected encounter invites us to reflect on what religious art might look like in the 21st century. Also in the church, a massive canvas by Aliou Diack lends the baptistery a tangible presence: something flows between the stone, the forms, and the materials, and the space suddenly seems to breathe differently, with an almost esoteric energy. It retains all of its history, yet is revitalized with an unexpected intensity.    <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57ba1ef elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"57ba1ef\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ad08255 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"ad08255\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21893\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA Mabunda Takadiwa\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa-768x1023.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa-1153x1536.jpg 1153w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Mabunda-Takadiwa-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Mabunda Takadiwa<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1685b56 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"1685b56\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1f0a03f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"1f0a03f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>Places that are never frozen in history<\/b><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the charming little wooden theater, which looks as if it came straight out of the early 20th century, we discover <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shadows of Re-Memory<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">  (2021), an animated film by South African filmmaker Lebohang Kganye. Using cut-out family photographs, the artist creates a small theater of shadows and silhouettes, whose sets unfold and fold back like the pages of a pop-up book. From the very first scene, two characters part ways: one boards a train and disappears, leaving the other alone. Behind the apparent lightheartedness of this puppet show lies a far darker story\u2014one of death, absence, and the gradual fading of memories. Kganye attempts to hold on to those who have passed away by literally bringing them back to life through animation. It is deeply moving to experience this film in a theater once intended for popular entertainment. The same techniques\u2014paper characters, miniature sets, the illusion of movement\u2014are used here to represent the irreparable. And in this small village theater, the fragility of these silhouettes takes on a particularly poignant dimension.       <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c20a4c2 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"c20a4c2\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2d23ab3 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"2d23ab3\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21896\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA, Ndary Lo\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo-768x1023.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo-1153x1536.jpg 1153w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Ndary-Lo-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Ndary Lo<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ec56dbf elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"ec56dbf\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5089ec7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5089ec7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b>The present needs the past. But the past also needs the present. <\/b><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One might wonder what contemporary African art brings to European institutions, their collections, and the way they tell the story of art. Here, the question takes on a more concrete, almost physical dimension. What happens when a work from Senegal, South Africa, or Ghana enters a church in Touraine, a village museum, or a nearly abandoned theater? It brings with it different forms and different experiences of the world. And the place, in turn, offers it a history, an architecture, and a collective memory with which it must engage. This reciprocity is essential.     <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Mus\u00e9e de la Pr\u00e9v\u00f4t\u00e9 immerses visitors in the intimate atmosphere of the artist\u2019s studio: from Igshaan Adams to Ferdinand Kokou Makouvia, the memory of the material evokes that of history and its scars, ultimately transcending them through the beauty of the artist\u2019s gesture. The works draw the viewer in, in a silence rich with meaning. <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is often talk of the need to circulate art, to make it accessible. It\u2019s almost a recurring theme in political discourse. Here, that ambition becomes a reality: Important works leave the closed world of a private collection to be displayed in places that are part of village life. They can be discovered by visitors who have come specifically to see them, but also by local residents for whom contemporary African art may be a new experience. As part of an ambitious outreach program, dozens of children sit down, draw, and\u2014above all\u2014engage with the works they are discovering.    <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7004edd elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"7004edd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6054a27 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"6054a27\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21899\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA, Yinka Shonibare\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare-768x1023.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare-1153x1536.jpg 1153w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Yinka-Shonibare-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Yinka Shonibare<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-635ffcc elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"635ffcc\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4b34035 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4b34035\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further on, in the former stables of the Ch\u00e2teau de Montgoger, the exhibition takes on a whole new dimension. This year, Rodolphe Blavy has chosen to explore the concept of monumentality. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">MONUMENT\u2019AFRICA \u2013 Against Permanence<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> brings together twenty artists and pays tribute to Alexander Calder, fifty years after his death. The connection is clear: Calder liberated sculpture from its immobility, introducing movement, precarious balance, and void. Here, artists from the collection, in turn, explore what defines a monument: its material, its function, its authority, and its ability to stand the test of time.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These include, in particular, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">*The Furietti Old Centaur* <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(2018) by Yinka Shonibare. The centaur takes its form from ancient statuary, but its body is covered in colorful wax-print patterns. The British-Nigerian artist thus invokes a classical figure, inherited from the Western imagination, to subvert its conventions and affiliations. By a twist of fate in the curatorial schedule, the day before, in London, one could see at the National Gallery<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> *Mr. and Mrs. Andrews without their Heads*<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (1998), displayed opposite Thomas Gainsborough\u2019s famous portrait. Two headless mannequins, dressed in wax fabric, reenact the poses of the landowning couple painted around 1750. The critique of class privilege and the relationship between British wealth and colonial history is explicit here, almost literal.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further on, Gon\u00e7alo Mabunda of Mozambique is building with <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Throne of the Emperor of Gaza <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(2018), a seat of power made from decommissioned weapons. The metal parts, once intended to kill, become elements of an almost ceremonial architecture. The throne, a symbol of sovereignty and authority, embodies in its very material the violence of Mozambique\u2019s history. It is a work whose power stems as much from its construction as from the recognition of its components.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7c40471 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"7c40471\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8fdd539 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8fdd539\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21897\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA, Pieter Hugo\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo-768x1023.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo-1153x1536.jpg 1153w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Pieter-Hugo-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Pieter Hugo<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-33ec285 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"33ec285\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-437db7a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"437db7a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We think back to Ndary Lo. To his figures made of welded rebar\u2014a humble material, a building material\u2014which he manages to make seem almost immaterial. In <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">*Les Envols* <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(2010), the bodies soar, as if torn from the pull of gravity. We can make out the rebar, the metal rods, and the assembly work, but our gaze is drawn first to the movement. That is the very paradox of this sculpture: to evoke flight in something that is ordinarily used to anchor buildings to the ground. \u201c <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a project dedicated to Calder, this exploration of gravity and lightness naturally finds its place<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ,\u201d Blavy points out.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Photography adds another dimension to the whole. With Senegalese artist Omar Victor Diop, the portrait becomes a means of examining the representation of Africans throughout history. His practice\u2014based on photographic staging, costume, pose, and references to classical painting\u2014is part of a reflection on visibility, memory, and the power of images. Here, the photograph is a work constructed with as much care as a historical painting. Its presence in this exhibition serves as a reminder that a monument can also take the form of a portrait: an image that restores a presence in the collective memory.    <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Like a jewel box in the heart of the forest, the old stables have withstood nature\u2019s onslaught. Artist Bianca Bondi, with her suspended dolphin, explores how humans negotiate their place in the world, set against Pieter Hugo\u2019s hyenas (photography), while Alexandre Lenoir displays his landscapes on walls that still bear the streaks left by ivy and the earth\u2019s moisture. <\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By the end of the tour, one comes to appreciate what it means to bring a collection to life and the vision and passion required for a French village to become\u2014for the duration of an exhibition\u2014a meeting place for artists, works of art, residents, and stories. All of this, in Blavy\u2019s words, stems from this \u201cdesire to continue believing in universalism, in the precious bond that unites us.\u201d <\/span><\/p><p><b>MONUMENT\u2019AFRICA \u2013 Against Permanence<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br\/><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Margaux and Rapha\u00ebl Blavy Collection<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br\/><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Saint-\u00c9pain and Montgoger Castle, Indre-et-Loire, France<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Through the AR(t]CHIPEL program, led by the Centre Pompidou and the Centre-Val de Loire Region.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-70c6889 elementor-widget elementor-widget-spacer\" data-id=\"70c6889\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"spacer.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-spacer-inner\"><\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-85602c1 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"85602c1\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"wp-caption\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"1999\" src=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi.jpg\" class=\"attachment-full size-full wp-image-21895\" alt=\"MONUMENT AFRICA, Bianca Bondi\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-768x1023.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-1153x1536.jpg 1153w, https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/MONUMENT-AFRICA-Bianca-Bondi-300x400.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"widget-image-caption wp-caption-text\">Bianca Bondi<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Collector Rodolphe Blavy creates a dialogue between contemporary African art and the heritage of a village in Touraine. This year, the MONUMENT\u2019AFRICA exhibition explores permanence, memory, and movement. It is a unique experience in which sharing a collection takes on its full meaning. Bianca Bondi Certain experiences remind us why, after so many years spent [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21907,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[929],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Monument&#039;Africa: How Art Transforms Places &#8212; Diptykmag<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.diptykmag.com\/en\/monumentafrica-how-art-transforms-places\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Monument&#039;Africa: How Art Transforms Places &#8212; Diptykmag\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Collector Rodolphe Blavy creates a dialogue between contemporary African art and the heritage of a village in Touraine. 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