Bartholdi, Champollion and the Sphinx – public monuments under debate

Immerse yourself in the fascinating history of public monuments through a new exhibition at the Camille Claudel Museum from April 11 to July 19, 2026. Between a fascination with ancient Egypt and contemporary questions about collective memory, this tour invites you to rediscover two major figures in French sculpture: Auguste Bartholdi and Camille Claudel.

The first part, presented in partnership with Colmar’s Bartholdi Museum, is entirely devoted to the Monument to Champollion, the renowned Egyptologist. You’ll discover a rich selection of preparatory drawings, models, archives and works tracing the genesis of the monument. The exhibition highlights Bartholdi’s fascination with ancient Egypt, the historical and political context of the project, and the aesthetic and symbolic debates it provoked, from its conception to its installation at the Collège de France.

The second section is part of the Camille Claudel Museum’s permanent exhibition. It unveils two public monument projects that marked, or failed to mark, Claudel’s career: the Buste de la République, never realized in his native Fère-en-Tardenois, and the Monument à Blanqui, a commission refused by the artist at a time marked by illness. This tour offers a sensitive dialogue between Claudel’s works, external loans and archival documents, exploring « statuophilia » – the passion for statues and public monuments that characterized France during the 3rd Republic.

As the tour unfolds, works of art, photographs, texts and historical documents interweave to explore the living role of monuments in our societies. As instruments of remembrance, pride or protest, they reflect the values of an era, while fuelling today’s debates on our relationship with public space.

A fascinating tour to better understand the place of monuments in our cities, between pride, oblivion and renewal.