One hundred years after its creation by Denis Peyrony, twenty years after a magnificent extension of its exhibition halls under the auspices of the architect Jean-Pierre Buffi, Nathalie Fourment, director of the national museum of prehistory for two and a half years, and his team, teeming with ideas and projects that contribute to the same goal: to give this museum the dynamic and magic of a scientific and cultural institution anchored in its territory and resolutely turned towards the future.
The valley of the Vézère, high place of the research in Prehistory, which one contemplates in majesty since the raised terrace of the museum, is World Heritage Site. The museum is the center of study, conservation and exhibition of collections taken from archaeological deposits that abound nearby. Its reputation is international. It aspires to become, from its theme «Prehistory», the reference cultural center for the inhabitants of the valley and, more broadly, for those of the metropolises that surround it. Its centenary is an opportunity to properly celebrate this past and future.
Meeting with Nathalie Fourment.
What does this centenary mean for you and the National Museum of Prehistory?
Celebrating the centenary of the Musée national de Préhistoire was first of all a great opportunity for the entire museum team: taking the time to work on the archives and in particular on the fascinating writings of its founder, Denis Peyrony (1869-1954), a simple teacher who was recognized and supported by the great prehistorian of the time, professor at the Collège de France: Louis Capitan (1854-1929).
It soon became apparent to us that the fundamental issues, which are ours today, were there as early as 1923. Of course, we no longer have the same vocabulary or the same operational strategies, but, more than ever and as in its beginnings, the museum must meet several challenges: to highlight collections from (for the most part) local archaeological sites, open these to the general public by relying on the tourist development of the Vézère valley, put oneself at the service of scientific research (welcoming researchers, hosting conferences and international conferences, etc.) and transmit (university relations, arts and cultural education programmes, public lecture cycles, etc.).
Have other issues been added since 1923?
Yes, because this prehistoric world has become, since the 1960s, very «competitive» locally: new sites quite wonderful such as, for example, the facsimiles of Lascaux, were likely to repel in the shade, unjustly, the riches exposed here.
That is why our only concern for this museum is to renew it deeply, to give it a place of choice in its territory. It must be understood that the exceptional importance of the museum, in terms of historiography, science and heritage, was often better known to a specialist in South Africa or Australia than in the Dordogne! The centenary thus comes to crown all the efforts made so that the inhabitants of the valley and those of the metropolises that surround us (Bordeaux, Toulouse, Limoges, etc.) meet here at home, in this «green paradise» of weekends and small holidays, and even in the heart of winter, with our museum full of life and interest.
What have you set up to improve or develop the museum’s offer?
To begin with, we changed the temporality of the exhibitions, by not programming them in summer as it was the case, but for the rest of the year, in order to reach this local and regional audience. And to further entrench the installation of a real annual season, we are working with the communities and with the departmental tourism committee who also want the tourist infrastructure to stop closing (or no longer completely) in winter.
In addition, we are lucky to have a 300 m² land reserve in front of the museum, which will allow us to build a new exhibition room in the longer term. In this more distant future, the current room will then become a large educational workshop. And without waiting for this equipment we develop of course a public policy and artistic and cultural education in connection with our scientific and cultural works and proposals.
On September 30, the public will also be able to discover a new route on the terrace of the museum…
The idea dates back to 2021 and, for this, a historical and archaeological study of the castle and troglodyte occupations was conducted in 2022. It has revealed a heritage continuity of our site since the Paleolithic (an archaeological site, «the shelter of the Castle», in the heart of the museum, testifies!), until today (through a medieval farm and a Renaissance castle).
We really wanted to present all these elements to the public. You should know that the terrace and the castle were closed since 2000. On September 30, the anniversary of the centenary, we will inaugurate a brand new outdoor tour, equipped with a set of devices placed on the terrace to explain the history of the site, its architecture, but also to detail the magnificent view that we have here on the Vézère, by indicating to the public the locations of its various archaeological deposits, along the valley, which provided the original background of our collections. We will also have an overview of the previous occupations of the cliff, an idea of its hidden circulations and its biodiversity. All this comes in the form of devices accessible to an audience of any age.
When you contemplate this admirable site, you also see an ideal place for festivals and concerts!
Without going too fast, let’s say that in small steps, our desire is to open the museum to a wider cultural offer, which can certainly accommodate artistic creation, quite welcome in our rural territory a little remote. We have an auditorium, in particular, which can host the concert program.
On the visual arts side, the relationship of the museum’s themes with contemporary art is almost obvious (we know how much wall art influenced 20th century art). That is why we have already set up a creative residence that allows us to welcome Aurélien Mauplot. We liked this artist’s project as much as it was part of a real knowledge and questioning of our museum. Far from making prehistory a mere pretext, he became involved in our activities, like an associated artist.
As for the heart of the institution, namely its collections and scientific research, how do you see the future of the museum?
Our collections are constantly reinvested by contemporary research. We receive an average of five to six researchers a day throughout the year, a quarter of whom are foreign. And this is what we want to make known to our audience. Thus, we try to show a sample of the studies of the researchers, thanks to the scientific team of the museum, especially in the temporary exhibitions, which are also an opportunity to put in perspective these collections and the renewed knowledge that we have.
In addition, we have just developed, as part of our new Scientific and cultural project, a revised acquisition strategy. The museum has taken such a part in the birth and development of prehistoric science! To remain a reference for national and international research, as well as for the public, it must acquire for the future the major archaeological collections that are emerging, today and in the future.
Will the presentation of the permanent collection be redesigned in the near future?
The scenography and museography of the permanent collection, dating from the 90s, are very beautiful, but very (and sometimes too) complex for the general public. Our idea is to redo them, but only in the longer term, to give us time to find a formula with which our successors can continue to play by adapting it. Indeed, everything evolves so quickly in our discipline, that the challenge is in this ability to follow as much as possible the rhythm of research.
This is why our idea is to multiply the experiences with the public and to be very attentive to the feedback that they will give us, in the context of temporary exhibitions but also the diversification of our cultural offer (creation residencies, diversified cultural programming, creation of new devices to be tested, etc.). We must learn, including from our failures. We must open our eyes to other ways of seeing and perceiving knowledge, and experience other languages. This will give us the skills and experience to order a new museum.
For the moment, we have tested, with the exhibition « Oxides, colours and metals ', a very small course for children. And we will think, next year, about the installation of a museum «young and family public» in the permanent collection. The temporary exhibition at the end of 2024 should, meanwhile, be a «exploded» exhibition: our room is too small, the exhibition will overflow here or there on the permanent collection, or even outside!
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