iFondation Cartier pour l'art contemporainPalais-Royal
The Harvest Season - Ibrahim Mahama
Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama's first major French show, with nine associate artists, reactivating African independence-era utopias through monumental installations made from salvaged materials.
More in Paris
The work starts outdoors. Burlap sacks that once carried Ghanaian cocoa to Europe hang between the arches of the Fondation's façade on place du Palais-Royal, so the takeover begins before the ticket desk. Inside, Ibrahim Mahama fills the whole building.
He has rebuilt a glass bottle factory from Kwame Nkrumah's years as Ghana's first president, using its original sign and metal frame, beside 1,000 crates and more than 25,000 green bottles. Galerie magazine found his ring of Asante stools, Parliament of Ghosts, "a satisfying resolution" to a "sometimes hard-to-navigate" interior. Nine invited artists and collectives share the floors. If you have ever carried a week of empties to the colonne à verre at 10pm, flinching at every clink, you know half the materials.
There's no set route, and Sortiraparis warns "it's easy to lose your bearings and miss pieces along the way". Tickets are €15, or €10 reduced, with flexible entry valid for one hour. Open until 10pm on Tuesdays, 8pm Wednesday to Sunday, closed Mondays.
Editor's pick
Sacks that carried Ghanaian cocoa to Europe hang on the façade. Inside, Ibrahim Mahama rebuilds a glass factory from Nkrumah's Ghana beside 25,000 green bottles. Galerie magazine found the interior "sometimes hard-to-navigate": there is no set route.
Look for
The façade textile
Burlap sacks once used to ship cocoa from Ghana to Europe hang between the 19th-century arches on place du Palais-Royal, visible from the street before you go in.
Things Fall Apart
The original sign and metal structure of Ghana's Aboso Glass Factory, rebuilt in Paris and flanked by 1,000 stacked wooden crates and more than 25,000 green glass bottles.
Parliament of Ghosts
A round amphitheatre of curved Asante stools, which Mahama ties to Ghana's democracy under Nkrumah from 1957 until the 1966 coup.
The bottle pool
On the lower floor, a red-brick swimming pool filled with green glass bottles and topped with terracotta pots.
James Barnor's photographs
Vintage prints, albums and large-format 20x24 Polaroid works by the Ghanaian photographer.
Good for
- Evening Visits
- Nerding Out
- Out-Of-Town Guests
Skip if
You want a clear route: there's no set path, and a critic found it easy to miss works.
With kids
The Fondation runs a French-language family visit for ages 6 to 10 on Saturdays at 15:00, plus weekend workshops for ages 3 to 10 at The Manufacture.
On now nearby
Nearby
Image credits
9
- The Harvest Season - Ibrahim MahamaCourtesy of Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain
- Paris > Kyoto > Paris. Quatre designers de retour du JaponCourtesy of MAD - Musée des Arts Décoratifs
- Marion Delarue. Pierre, plume, ciseaux !© Marion Delarue (née en 1986) 2018
- LOOK ! 40 ans de mode au musée© Les Arts Décoratifs / Jean Tholance
- Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporainChabe01, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- MAD - Musée des Arts DécoratifsGFreihalter / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- LouvreBenh Lieu Song, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Bourse de Commerce - Pinault CollectionChabe01, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Musée de la BnF (site Richelieu)Chabe01 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0