The Bicentennial of Photography
Celebrating 200 Years of the Photographic Gaze
In 2026 and 2027, photography marks its 200th anniversary.
From the first images fixed permanently in the early 19th century near Chalon-sur-Saône to contemporary practices, photography shapes how we see the world, record events and share stories, emotions and ideas.
To mark this milestone, the French Ministry of Culture is launching a major, inclusive celebration of French photographic creation and heritage, running from September 2026 to September 2027 across the country and beyond, in mainland France, overseas territories, the regions, and internationally.
An event for everyone, everywhere
Scherzo di follia, entre 1863 et 1866
The Bicentennial of Photography will showcase photography in all its forms:
- artistic and experimental work
- photographic heritage
- uses in scientific research, documentary practice and education
- participatory and cultural outreach projects
The extensive programme of national and international events will include exhibitions, festivals, gatherings, conferences, educational workshops, publications and collaborative projects.
The full programme will be revealed in June 2026.
A shared celebration shaped by the photographic community
The Ministry of Culture has invited all those involved in photography and culture to take part in this unique moment by developing new and original projects.
A national call for projects for ‘Bicentennial of Photography’ accreditation has identified events that reflect the spirit of the Bicentennial — diverse, participatory and open to all.
Has your project been accredited? Visit the Organisers’ area to register it in the official programme.
An expert advisory committee to guide reflection on the history and challenges of photography
To guide thinking around this major celebration, an expert advisory academic panel has been established, reflecting both its scholarly approach and artistic vision. Chaired by Dominique de Font-Réaulx, an art historian specialising in photography and senior curator at the Louvre Museum, it brings together leading experts in the field:
- Éléonore Challine, senior lecturer at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, specialist in the social and cultural history of photographers, junior member of the Institut Universitaire de France, treasurer of the Société Française de Photographie and editor-in-chief of the journal ‘Photographica’.
- Alexia Fabre, curator of the 17th Lyon Biennale of Contemporary Art, former director of the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Paris and director of MAC VAL - Museum of Contemporary Art of Val-de-Marne.
- Michel Poivert, photography historian, professor at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, exhibition curator, president of the preparatory project for the Collège International de la Photographie in Bry-sur-Marne and author of numerous publications, notably ‘50 ans de photographie française’ (Ed. Textuel, 2019).
- Pierre Singaravélou, professor at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, historian specialising in the history of colonisation and globalisation in the 19th and 20th centuries, joint editor-in-chief of the review Monde(s). Histoire Espace Relations.
- Antonio Somaini, professor of film, media and visual culture theory at the Université Sorbonne-Nouvelle, senior member of the Institut Universitaire de France. His current research project examines the impact of artificial intelligence on images, photography, cinema, visual culture and contemporary artistic practices. He is also the chief curator of the exhibition ‘Le monde selon l'IA’ (Jeu de Paume, 11 April-21 September 2025).
Why this Bicentennial? Insights from the Expert Advisory Committee
A manifesto, written by the academic panel, explores the historical, aesthetic and philosophical dimensions of photography, from its utopian beginnings to its central place in today’s cultural, social and technological practices.
It sets out four key ways of thinking about photography:
- for 200 years, photography has shaped our shared history — a history that is both public and personal, collective and individual.
- it has transformed our relationship with reality, grounded in an ideal of accuracy, while exploring the tension between photography’s presence in it and distortion of it.
- constantly evolving, photography has become deeply embedded in artistic, scientific, social, political and educational practices.
- photography looks beyond the immediate towards distant places, the infinitely small and the infinitely large.
Excerpt from the manifesto for the Bicentennial of Photography
This invention, combining exploration with the magic of light, revolutionized our world, profoundly altering our representation of it, in essence and nature, and forging a new connection with reality.
Photography sprang from a utopian dream: the belief that it was possible to narrow the gap between reality and its reproduction, as if an object and its photograph were one and the same thing.
Although never realized, this ideal of photographic objectivity—central to the invention of photography—proved powerfully seductive, fostering the common perception of photographs as purely objective records. This perception endures, even in the face of today’s AI-generated imagery.
This constant interplay between the utopian ideal of objective representation and the prevailing assumption of its achievement quickly fostered a unique creative approach in photography, enabling its practitioners to explore the tension between capturing reality and distorting it.
By the mid-19th century, Niépce's invention had opened up a vast field of aesthetic possibilities. Across two centuries and every continent, photography’s artistic, scientific, social, political, and educational applications have been continually recreated, redeveloped, reshaped, and reinvented. Photographic images now serve as essential tools for disseminating knowledge and information through books, newspapers, and all forms of media.
The academic panel is chaired by Dominique de Font-Réaulx, an art historian specializing in the 19th century and in photography, and General Curator at the Louvre Museum. It is composed of renowned historians and experts in photography and the arts: Eléonore Challine, Alexia Fabre, Michel Poivert, Pierre Singaravélou, and Antonio Somaini.
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