Bernadette Dufrêne Defends Centre Pompidou Anniversary Book Against Jean Lauxerrois

In a response published in art press (February 2008), Bernadette Dufrêne, director of the book marking the Centre Pompidou's 30th anniversary, refutes claims made by Jean Lauxerrois in his November 2007 art press article. Dufrêne counters accusations of a deliberate blackout, noting Lauxerrois's analysis is cited on pages 10 and 56-57. She highlights the book's 850 mostly unpublished photos, first-time published sources, and a chronology extending to 2007. She denies that texts are undated, that the chronology is uncommented, and that there is no critical reading of recent exhibitions like Big Bang, analyzed on pages 239-246. Dufrêne defends the multi-author approach (45 external researchers vs. 21 in-house), arguing it avoids a totalizing ideological perspective. She asserts the book provides historical context for debates on spectacularization, commodification, and free admission, with budgets given for opening and key years (1982, 1983, 2000). She rejects Lauxerrois's claim of a linear history, citing discussions of conflicts on pages 36-38, 53-58, 151-152, and 171. Dufrêne notes that the book covers the digital revolution and extra-Western arts, periods Lauxerrois's analysis (ending in 1992) misses. She concludes by mentioning that new Centre president Alain Seban announced a "refoundation" on October 24, 2007, countering Lauxerrois's metaphor of a dying institution.