PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVES
Since 2021, the Institut has had the pleasure of preserving and promoting three unique photographic collections: those of Bettina Rheims, Jean-Louis Schoellkopf and Agnès Varda.
These three photographic archives reflect the diversity of the medium through their distinct aesthetic approaches, and its technical evolution from film to digital. More generally, these archives serve as an important resource for the critical study of our society from the 1940s to the present day.
Alongside this, the Institut’s library is one of the world’s ten leading centres for the history of photographic publishing, thanks to a pledged donation and the bequest of more than 25,000 books by a private collector, Lucien Birgé.
An exhibition of the archives of Bettina Rheims, Jean-Louis Schoellkopf and Agnès Varda took place in October 2021 during our PERSPECTIVES programme.
AN ARCHIVAL MISSION AT THE HEART OF OUR PROJECT
The photographers’ archives constitute the Institut’s main resource for the development of its four other fields of activity: artistic and cultural transmission and critical reading of the photographic image, exhibitions, editorial policy and support for research and creation.
PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVE’S CONSERVATION
All of these collections, preserved in their physical and intellectual integrity, benefit from specific physical conservation treatments. The establishment of an internal inventory and reproduction service now ensures their wider diffusion, notably through our dedicated online database.
As key subjects of the Institut’s research into the challenges of photographic practice from the 1940s to the present day, they are also available for consultation. Exhibitions and publications —such as Les Carnets de l’Institut—now enable the research projects dedicated to their study to be brought to life.
↘︎ Online database