European and American buyers are returning to the Parcours des Mondes

In Paris’s Latin Quarter, in the area between Boulevard Saint-Germain and the Seine, the 25th edition of the Parcours des Mondes, which, as our readers know, is the world’s most important ethnic art event. To celebrate the event’s “silver jubilee”, the organisers commissioned Damien Poulain, a French artist, to decorate the streets of the area with works that allude to the totemic role of birds in various cultures. In doing so, they have further highlighted how, during the Parcours, the Latin Quarter becomes a veritable “open-air museum”. “This edition of the Parcours,” explains Yves-Bernard Debie, general director of the Parcours, “was, without a doubt, the best of the last ten years. More than 10,000 visitors brought the streets of Saint-Germain-des-Prés to life and, above all, buyers responded very positively. All the exhibitors told us they were extremely satisfied. This success,” he continues, “coincides with the 20th anniversary of the Musée du Quai Branly Jacques Chirac and with the extraordinary work carried out over the years by its curators. The start of the year was also particularly significant, with the reopening at the Louvre of the Galerie des Cinq Continents, made possible thanks to the support of the collector and patron Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière. The strong presence of foreign visitors and major international institutions, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, confirms not only the now deeply international scope of the Parcours des Mondes, but also the great interest that the arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas continue to generate worldwide”.

Meanwhile, Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière stated: “For 25 years, the Parcours have been transforming Paris into the world capital where all arts and cultures converge. Their exceptional nature makes them a unique forum for exchange and the passing on of knowledge – an integral part of the mission of our national museums, which work to foster dialogue between cultures and peoples. In an increasingly unstable and fragmented world, culture and the arts remain pillars of understanding and cohesion.”

As has been the case in recent years, one of the highlights of the Parcours has been the Pierre Moos Prize, the collector who had directed the Parcours from 2008 until his death. This year, the prize – which is also sponsored by Christie’s and aims to recognise the most interesting publication on non-European cultures released in the preceding twelve months – was awarded to the book ‘Hawai‘i: A Kingdom Crossing Oceans’, which is the catalogue of an exhibition held at the British Museum under the curatorship of Alice Christophe.

The other highlights of this year’s Parcours were the exhibitions created especially for the occasion, which visitors could view free of charge. Among these, it is worth highlighting ‘Mains des Maîtres’, which revisited and updated one of the central themes in the discovery of African art as ‘art’: the identification of masters and schools. Furthermore, the prize awarded to those who create works of art using bamboo is also worth mentioning. The event, organised by the Mingei Gallery – which specialises in Japanese art – was awarded to Tashima Shiun, a contemporary Japanese artist specialising in sculpture and the art of weaving bamboo fibres.

This year, 46 galleries took part in the Parcours. The 26 French gallery owners were joined by those from Belgium (7), Spain (3) and other countries. As in recent years, Parcours 2026 featured just one Italian gallery: the Dalton Somaré gallery from Milan. Notably, 11 of the participating galleries offered works for sale, organising fully-fledged themed exhibitions. All the gallery owners we spoke to confirmed what Yves-Bernard Debie had said: this edition went very well, as it was attended by collectors from all over the world, particularly from Europe and the United States, who made a number of purchases.