In 2026, the Louvre invites ORLAN for a new edition of the Leçons d’artiste, on May 22, June 12 and September 25. Following Michelangelo Pistoletto, Simone Fattal and Kader Attia, the artist will in turn share her perspective on the museum, its collections and the history of art. The principle of these encounters is simple: to give a contemporary artist a platform to explain how works from the past continue to nourish today’s creation.
A cornerstone of contemporary art, ORLAN has spent decades pushing boundaries across performance, photography, video, sculpture, robotics and new technologies. At the heart of her practice lies a central question: the body, repeatedly represented, transformed, controlled, censored or reclaimed.
Organized at the Michel Laclotte Auditorium, at the Louvre Museum, these three lectures will show how ORLAN links the old masterworks to today’s major debates: the making of images, the place of the body, censorship, and the freedom and responsibility of artists.
For ORLAN, the Louvre isn’t just a place where ancient masterpieces are kept. It’s a wellspring of ideas for creating new images. She’s drawn to both the iconic works, such as the Victory of Samothrace, and the lesser‑known pieces. She will also discuss Venus, Satyr and the Sleeping Love by Correggio, a work tied to her performance À poil sans poils, staged at the Louvre in 1978 and later revived.
Her main idea is clear: art history is never neutral. It’s shaped by choices, omissions, censorship, and viewpoints.
The opening talk, "Nothing is created ex nihilo", will take place on Friday, May 22, 2026 at 7:00 pm. ORLAN will explain that images never emerge from nothing. A new work always, in one way or another, draws on older imagery. It may reference them, transform them, critique them, or reinvent them.
She will notably discuss Caravaggio, Botticelli, Correggio, Bernini, Ingres, Goya and the Winged Victory of Samothrace. This lecture will help audiences understand how today’s artists converse with those of the past.
On Friday, June 12, 2026 at 7:00 p.m., the second lecture, "Naked and Hairless", will take place. It will explore the representation of the body in art. ORLAN will discuss bodies that are shown, concealed, idealized or censored. She will connect the nude in ancient art with contemporary forms of image control, especially on social networks.
This lecture will also invite reflection on the place of women in art history and in society. For ORLAN, the body is not merely an aesthetic subject: it is a political one.
The third lecture, "The Responsibility of Artists", will take place on Friday, September 25, 2026 at 7:00 PM. ORLAN will discuss the role of art in the face of war, oppression and violence. She will address the representation of suffering, wounded bodies, conflicts and injustices.
She will draw on artists such as Goya, Otto Dix, Picasso with Guernica, or Emeric Lhuisset. The aim is to show that art can also bear witness, denounce and provoke reflection.
CesArtist Lessons ne sont pas une simple visite commentée du Louvre. Ce sont des conférences où ORLAN expliquera sa façon de voir le musée, les œuvres et l’histoire de l’art. Le public pourra y découvrir comment les images anciennes influencent encore la création contemporaine. Il pourra aussi mieux comprendre les grands thèmes de l’œuvre d’ORLAN : le corps, la liberté, la censure, la place des femmes et la responsabilité des artistes.
These sessions cater to both contemporary art lovers and visitors eager to discover the Louvre from a fresh, different angle.
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Dates and Opening Time
From May 22, 2026 to September 25, 2026
Location
Place des Pyramides
75001 Paris 1
Prices
Free
Official website
www.louvre.fr
More information
Access:
Until 5:30 PM: via the Richelieu Passage
After 5:30 PM: via the Pyramid entrance only
