Festival de l'histoire de l'art 2026 puts fashion in the spotlight

The 15th edition of the Festival de l'histoire de l'art (FHA) at Château de Fontainebleau, from June 5 to 7, 2026, recognizes fashion as a full-fledged artistic medium. Organized by the Institut National d'Histoire de l'Art (INHA), the festival features over 300 events. Moroccan architect and anthropologist Salima Naji gives the inaugural lecture. Morocco is the first African country to be the guest of honor. The program includes a roundtable on textile circulations in Central and West Africa, a conference on pre-classical Greek footwear, and a screening of Mounia Meddour's film "Papicha." The theme reflects a growing institutional interest in fashion, evidenced by the 2023 creation of a Fashion Heritage chair at Université Paris I, and recent museum exhibitions such as Schiaparelli, Balmain, and Balenciaga at the Louvre in 2025, and a dialogue between Quai Branly's textile collections and contemporary African creations until July 12, 2026. The festival was created in 2011 by the French Ministry of Culture. Events are free except for film screenings at Cinéma Ermitage (€5).