Shadow is light, memory of places: a contemporary art exhibition in the heart of the Pantheon

In France, there are ten Hauts lieux de la mémoire nationale: places dedicated to the history, remembrance and transmission of memories of contemporary conflicts. Contemporary artist Nicolas Daubanes visited these Hauts lieux, and drew inspiration from them to create five emotionally-charged works.

The Pantheon is hosting these works as part of a unique exhibition, on display from November 19, 2025, to March 8, 2026. The exhibition Ombre est lumière, mémoire des lieux(Shadow is Light, Memory of Places) reproduces the striking elements of these important sites, the atmospheres, architectural details, and motifs that particularly touched the artist.

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These creations are made from iron filings or steel powder, resistant materials that nevertheless produce fragile works that can disappear in an instant. A metaphor for the memories and histories brought to light in these high places visited by the artist. Faced with these creations, spectators are invited to let themselves be carried away by these stories, but also by these emotions, these memories of men and women.

These creations are astonishing: these black-and-white places seem frozen in the past, as if haunted by their own history. In the Pantheon, there are three large works and several smaller ones arranged in a semicircle. The exhibition is short but interesting for those who are passionate about French history and monuments. 

The works are references to Montluc prison, where Jean Moulin was detained, or Mont-Valérien, the execution site of many Resistance fighters such as Missak Manouchian.

This exhibition on memory resonates directly with the Panthéon, the place where the nation's great men and women are preserved, to ensure that their struggles, ideals and achievements live on. An exhibition that promises to be emotionally charged, to be discovered this winter in Paris.

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