Agnès Varda's Cinematic Photography Exhibition at Villa Medici in Rome

Agnès Varda's exhibition 'De-ci de-là, Paris-Rome' at Villa Medici - Accademia di Francia in Rome presents her photographic and cinematic work through May 25, 2026. Curated by Anne de Mondenard and Carole Sandrin, the show originated at the Musée Carnavalet in 2025. Varda, born in Ixelles in 1938 and died in Paris in 2019, began her career as a photographer in postwar Paris before becoming the sole female director accepted into the Nouvelle Vague movement. The exhibition features her early black-and-white portraits of artists like Alexander Calder, Giulietta Masina, Federico Fellini, and Jean Vilar, alongside documentation of her life at Rue Daguerre with Jacques Demy. Her 1962 film 'Cléo from 5 to 7' is highlighted as a cinematic exhibition. A lost 1978 collaborative film segment for 'Loin du Vietnam' directed by Varda was excluded from the final edit, surviving only through production photos and notes. The exhibition positions Varda's work at the intersection of photography, cinema, and contemporary art, following her recognition at the 2003 Venice Biennale's Utopia Station.