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The Discreet Charm of the Colonies. Kongo, Brazil and Colonial Desire in the Old Indies
A hammock. Palm trees. Monkeys. Birds. This menagerie depicted in the Old Indies, a tapestry series produced by the French royal factory of the Gobelins, reveals a blend of scientific curiosity and fascination with exotic subjects that was typical of 17th- and 18th-century French decorative art. But what are we to make of the representation of the dark-skinned men and women seen against the backdrop of the tropical flora and the sugar mill? In this talk, Cécile Fromont interrogates the provenance and iconography of this tapestry series in an effort to shed light on its role in France’s colonial project. In doing so, she proposes a reflection on the visibility and invisibility of colonial history in heritage monuments. She also explores contemporary debates about their display as historically and socially charged objects.
About the lecturer
Cécile Fromont is an art historian specializing ion the visual, material, and religious cultures of Africa, Latin America, and Europe in the early modern period (1500-1800). Her scholarship sheds light on the cross-cultural ebbs and flows that unfolded during this period across and around the Atlantic Ocean. Her research and writing centere on African expressive, spiritual, and material cultures and their ramifications in Latin America and Europe, demonstrating how the often violent, but vital connections between the three continents gave contours to the early modern world and continue to shape our own times. She is the author of several award-winning books, including The Art of Conversion: Christian Visual Culture in the Kingdom of Kongo (2014) and Images on a Mission in Early Modern Kongo and Angola (2022). Beyond academia, she collaborates internationally with museums and other public-facing institutions on publications, exhibitions, and programming aimed at broad audiences. Born and raised in Martinique, her ancestors came to the island from Africa, South Asia, and Burgundy. She graduated from Sciences -Po Paris before receiving her AMA and PhD from Harvard.
About the series
In its Special Guest series, the MMFA invites leading specialists to offer their cutting-edge view on the arts and museums.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Location: Maxwell Cummings Auditorium, 1379-A, Sherbrooke Street West
Terms of the reservation: Please note that seat reservations are held until the beginning of the event. Once the activity has started, any unoccupied seats will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Public Partners
Canada Council for the Arts, Conseil des arts de Montréal, and Gouvernement du Québec
Major Patrons
Fondation de la Chenelière and Fondation Ariane Riou et Réal Plourde
Patron
The Molson Foundation
