Symposium: "Montparnasse and its Legacies" at Columbia Global Paris Center | Reid Hall, Paris,
November 13-14, 2026.

Hosted by Columbia University’s Reid Hall & the Columbia Global Paris Center, and organized in collaboration with the Associations L’AiR Arts and Cité Falguière, this symposium marks the beginning of Montparnasse International, a community-initiated programme designed to reaffirm the Montparnasse district as a historic epicenter for artistic creation and intercultural exchange.

Montparnasse has long been internationally recognized as a cradle of artistic production, renowned for the multicultural and heterogeneous avant-gardism that ignited at the dawn of the twentieth century. French artists and global practitioners alike were drawn to the district by its reputation for creative innovation and radical freedom. Yet, despite its deep association with some of the century's most celebrated figures—including Brâncuși, Soutine, Zadkine, Foujita, Modigliani, Picasso, and others – Montparnasse remains markedly under-examined and under-theorized as a holistic creative ecosystem.

While the first École de Paris (1905-1940) anchors the neighborhood's reputation and mythology, the artistic culture of Montparnasse continued to resonate into the postwar period, animated by figures such as Alberto Giacometti, Yves Klein, Niki de Saint Phalle, Agnès Varda, Frans Krajcberg, and Claude de Soria. Today, the legacy of the École de Paris serves as a powerful historical model for cultural hospitality, at a time when the necessity of cross-cultural dialogue is more pressing than ever.

This symposium aims to unite currently disparate but interlinked strands of research – spanning art history, museum studies, cultural anthropology, disability studies, gender studies, and queer theory – to initiate a long-term project decoding the complex creative ecosystem of Montparnasse, both past and present. In doing so, we seek to reexamine the relationship between Montparnassian creators and place, interrogating what made –and continues to make – this area a unique site of global creative fusion.

Submissions are invited that explore, but are not limited to, the following:
- Artist studios, colonies & communities in Montparnasse (past and present)
- Historiographic perspectives: problematizing École de Paris terminology, definitions and boundaries
- New biographies of individual artists of Montparnasse
- Les Montparnassiennes: female artists of Montparnasse
- Cultural migration & the dissemination of Montparnassian praxis
- Artists in exile, political displacement and Montparnasse as creative refuge
- Art residencies as catalysts for cross-cultural dialogue from the École de Paris to the present
- Queer artists and communities of Montparnasse
- Art and disability, physical & mental health conditions (including addictions)
- Key collectors, critics, dealers, exhibitions, and galleries linked to the artists of Montparnasse
- Art education & academies, e.g. Académie de la Grande Chaumière, Académie Vassilieff
- Art materials of the artists of Montparnasse: foundries, quarries and art supplies
- Convivial spaces: cafés, bistros, clubs and the artists of Montparnasse

We invite proposals from scholars, artists / practitioners, archivists, museum and heritage professionals and key players in cultural mobility working inside and outside academic institutions. Conference contributions could take the form of either a twenty-minute academic paper, participation in a panel / round table discussion around a designated theme, or a performance.

The primary conference language will be English, though contributions in French are also welcome. Please note that simultaneous translation will not be provided.

Submissions:
Proposals should include the following, compiled into a single pdf:
- author name(s) and institutional affiliations (where relevant)
- an abstract of maximum 300 words
- CV & presenter bio(s) of up to 150 words.

Please submit proposals via this online form by July 17, 2026: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd8CXJxsX4GIaOqzMwcBKXCVHlstIC48awr39aQY9o0kefc7Q/viewform

Scientific Committee:
- Brunhilde Biebuyck, PhD, Columbia University, Director of Reid Hall & Columbia Global Paris Center
- Ewa Bobrowska, PhD, Board member, Association Cité Falguière
- Marie Doezema, Senior Special Projects Manager, Columbia Global Paris Center
- Alexandra Franklin, Board member, Association Cité Falguière
- Louise Franklin, PhD, Board member, Association Cité Falguière
- Sofiya Glukhova, Archives & Catalogue raisonné Marc Chagall & Board member, Association Cité Falguière
- Stephanie Nadalo, PhD, Program Director (BFA), Parsons Paris & President, Association Cité Falguière
- Mila Ovchinnikova, Founding Director & President, Association L’AiR Arts
- Clare Patrick, Curator and Program Manager, Association L’AiR Arts

Unfortunately, at this time there is no budget to offset the costs of travel or lodging.