Festival of Art History

15^th Edition — Fashion and Morocco

From **Friday, June 5 to Sunday, June 7, 2026**, the Festival de l'Histoire de l'Art (FHA) takes over the Château de Fontainebleau and the city for the 15^th time for three intense days dedicated to culture, research, and creation.

The 2026 edition explores the theme of **Fashion** as a historical object at the crossroads of art, societies, and cultures — revealing identity constructions, cultural exchanges, and politico-economic dynamics across eras. **Morocco** is honored as the guest country, a first for a country from the African continent: an opportunity to explore a rich heritage shaped by African, Arab, Amazigh, and Jewish influences, from Antiquity to contemporary creation.

Over 300 Free Events in a Royal Setting

The festival offers over 300 free events in the historical rooms of the château, its gardens, and the city's cultural venues (Théâtre municipal, Quartier Henri IV, Cinéma l'Ermitage…): conferences led by leading specialists, round tables, film screenings, concerts, performances, shows, exhibitions, unique guided tours, workshops for children and families, and a large art book fair with about a hundred publishers.

Opening and Closing Conferences

The opening conference is given by Moroccan architect and anthropologist **Salima Naji**, winner of the 2025 International Women Architects Award, who will share twenty years of practice in restoration and community architecture. The closing conference features multidisciplinary artist **Amina Agueznay**, Morocco's representative at the Venice Biennale, on textile heritage as an «act of resistance and memory».

Cinema, Shows, Concerts, and Performances

On the cinema side, guest directors **Maryam Touzani** and **Nabil Ayouch** present Haut et fort (2021) and Le Bleu du caftan (2022). The musical and performance program fosters dialogue between France and Morocco with, among others: Näss by choreographer **Fouad Boussouf**, the gnawa group **Black Koyo**, the Moroccan urban circus **Colokolo**, the breakdance-photography performance by **Yoriyas**, Le Voyage de Delacroix by the Compagnie les Chemins du Monde, as well as concerts by the Conservatoire de Fontainebleau and the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique de Paris.

Tours, Workshops, and Professional Meetings

Over thirty exceptional tour routes are led by guide-lecturers, architects, curators, and students from the École du Louvre, notably opening areas of the château usually closed. Workshops for families introduce Moroccan-inspired embroidery, weaving, real tennis (jeu de paume), and circus arts. The festival is also a major professional and student event, with heritage professions forums, a Current Affairs Forum, and student mobility grants.

Organization

The festival is an event of the Ministry of Culture implemented by the Institut national d'histoire de l'art (INHA) and the Château de Fontainebleau. Scientific curator for the 2026 edition: **Hadrien Laroche** (INHA).

Program — Festival de l'Histoire de l'Art 2026

Over 300 events are scheduled from Friday, June 5 to Sunday, June 7, 2026, in the château, its gardens, and the city of Fontainebleau. The full program is available on the official website and in the 2026 brochure PDF. Selection of highlights below.

Friday, June 5, 2026

• 10:50 AM — Round table «Material cultures, immaterial cultures, the importance of places…» · Château de Fontainebleau, Salle des Colonnes
• 12:00 PM — Conference «New archaeological research on the origins of the Almohad Empire in medieval Morocco» by Jean-Pierre Van Staëvel, Abdallah Fili, Ahmed Saleh Ettahiri, and Sébastien Gaime · Théâtre Municipal de Fontainebleau
• 2:00 PM — Round table «The digital database 'Fashion in the museum, a French history'» · Chapelle de la Trinité
• 2:00 PM — Conference «Sumptuary laws and the dynamics of fashion in France in the 16^th and 17^th centuries» · Vestibule Serlio
• 2:00 PM — Round table «Conservation professions and the collections project» · Vestibule Saint-Louis
• 2:00 PM — Conference «How fashion became a museum object: the example of Lyon collections» · Quartier Henri IV
• 2:15 PM — Round table «Cultural mediation and digital tools» · Quartier Henri IV, Grande Salle
• Evening — Show Näss by choreographer Fouad Boussouf, a piece inspired by a Moroccan group from the 1970s
• Inaugural conference by **Salima Naji**, architect and anthropologist (twenty years of practice in restoration and community architecture)
• Opening concert by the Conservatoire municipal de Fontainebleau

Saturday, June 6, 2026

• Parade and concert by the gnawa group **Black Koyo**
• Concert Le Royaume du Maroc by Paul Wranitzky by the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique de Paris
• Moroccan urban circus show **Colokolo** with acrobatics
• Breakdance and street photography performance by **Yoriyas**
• Musical tale Le Voyage de Delacroix (50 min, for ages 10 and up) by Frédéric Calmès and Léo Fabre-Cartier · Compagnie les Chemins du Monde
• Screening-meeting Haut et fort (2021) in the presence of **Nabil Ayouch** and **Maryam Touzani** · Cinéma l'Ermitage
• Conferences on Bronze Age clothing (Hakima Benabderrahmane), pre-classical Greek footwear (Katerina Kakodimou), textile reconstruction (Muriel Barbier), colonial fashion, Mediterranean fashions of the Renaissance, the role of Lyon textile workshops in haute couture (Marion Falaise)…
• Art book and journal fair (highlighting Moroccan literature)
• Family workshops: Moroccan-inspired embroidery, weaving, real tennis (jeu de paume), circus arts
• Exceptional guided tours of the château (over 30 routes)

Sunday, June 7, 2026

• Conference on Igiliz, an Almohad site in the Anti-Atlas, and the consequences of the 2023 earthquake (Jean-Pierre Van Staëvel and his team)
• Continuation of the **Colokolo** show (Moroccan urban circus)
• Screening-meeting Le Bleu du caftan (2022) in the presence of Maryam Touzani and Nabil Ayouch
• Closing conference by **Amina Agueznay**, multidisciplinary artist representing Morocco at the Venice Biennale — «Textile heritage as an act of resistance and memory»
• Current Affairs Forum (major restoration projects, latest discoveries)
• Art book fair (continued)
• Tours, workshops, and performances throughout the day

Detailed schedules and full program of over 300 events on the official website: festivaldelhistoiredelart.fr/edition-2026/

• 15^th edition — Theme: **Fashion**
• Guest country: **Morocco** (1^st African country since the festival's creation in 2011)
• Over 300 free events over 3 days at the Château de Fontainebleau
• Opening conference by architect Salima Naji, closing conference by artist Amina Agueznay
• Cinema: Maryam Touzani and Nabil Ayouch as guests (Haut et fort, Le Bleu du caftan)
• Shows and concerts: Fouad Boussouf (Näss), Black Koyo (gnawa), Colokolo (Moroccan circus), Yoriyas, Compagnie les Chemins du Monde
• Over 30 exceptional tour routes within the château
• Large art book and journal fair

Access

Location

Château de Fontainebleau, 77300 Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne, Île-de-France.

How to get there

• By train: Fontainebleau-Avon station (Transilien R from Paris Gare de Lyon, 40 minutes), then bus line 1 or a 15-minute walk to the château.
• By car: A6 exit Fontainebleau, follow signs for the Château. Free parking nearby.

Prices

Festival entirely free and open to all. No reservation required for most events.

Contact

• Website: festivaldelhistoiredelart.fr
• Facebook: FestivaldelHistoiredelArt
• Instagram: @fha_festival