At a glance
Eighteen women sculptors, historically overlooked by the canon, reclaim their presence in the Petit Palais through Prune Nourry’s sculpted portraits and archival recordings woven into the galleries.
Meet the artist
Why go
Prune Nourry’s intervention transforms a traditional museum walk into a discovery of forgotten history, using new sculptures and sound to give physical form to artists who were long erased.
You'll see
Contemporary sculpted portraits · Archival testimonies · Works by Käthe Kollwitz · Nancy Elizabeth Prophet · Sarah Bernhardt
Pace of visit
The works are scattered across the permanent galleries, requiring a steady pace to find each intervention within the existing collection.
Don't miss
The dialogue between the contemporary portraits and the archival voices that bring the personal struggles of these sculptors to life.
Artlovers Tip
Skip the search for a central exhibition hall and head straight into the permanent collection; the power of the show lies in how the new works disrupt the familiar museum layout.
Inside the exhibition
Visionaries — Carte blanche to Prune Nourry at the Petit Palais in Paris, France, invites contemporary artist Prune Nourry to disrupt the museum’s permanent galleries. Nourry focuses on eighteen women sculptors whose names have largely been omitted from the official history of art, giving them physical and auditory presence through a series of site-specific interventions.
The exhibition integrates new sculpted portraits with archival material and works by significant figures such as Käthe Kollwitz, Nancy Elizabeth Prophet, Jane Poupelet, and Sarah Bernhardt. Rather than a standalone gallery show, these pieces are strategically placed to engage with the venue’s historic collection, highlighting the specific media—from bronze to sound—that defined their individual careers.
This intervention matters because it moves beyond theoretical criticism, literally populating the museum with the faces and voices of those it previously ignored. It provides a contemporary feminist reading of the Petit Palais holdings, forcing a reconsideration of whose work is preserved and why these particular women were sidelined for so long.
Worth travelling for?
A thoughtful, rewarding intervention for visitors interested in how contemporary art can rewrite history, with a particularly resonant focus on figures like Eva Gonzalès.
Experience as an Artlover
Entrance to the exhibition and the permanent collection is free. Visitors should follow the designated route through the museum to locate all eighteen interventions within the galleries.
Visionaries — Carte blanche to Prune Nourry
Admission
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