Présence et résonance
- Date
- From 23.09.2026 to 14.03.2027
- Place
-
Abbaye de Fontfroide
-
RD 613 Chem. de Fontfroide
-
Narbonne
- Phone
-
04 68 45 11 08
- Hours
-
10:00–18:00
Three works from the Foundation’s Collection in the library of Fontfroide Abbey
On the occasion of the exhibition "Gustave Fayet, Collector - Creator," from October 9, 2026, to March 8, 2027, at the Fondation, the Abbey of Fontfroide is making an exceptional loan of its three classified masterpieces by Odilon Redon, which will leave their original setting for the very first time.
At the same time, three works from the Fondation Louis Vuitton Collection, jointly chosen by the two institutions, will be exhibited from September 23, 2026, to March 14, 2027, in the library: Dust Storms in Kidal (2013) by Omar Ba, and Auris and Rumen (2007) by Bernard Frize.
Omar Ba, "Tempêtes de poussières à Kidal", 2013
Huile, crayon, encre de chine, acrylique, gouache sur carton ondulé, 200 x 150 cm. Collection Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris © Adagp, Paris, 2026. Présence et résonance à l’Abbaye de Fontfroide - © Rogier Fackeldey
By welcoming painters Omar Ba (born 1977) and Bernard Frize (born 1954), the abbey remains faithful to its tradition of openness to contemporary creation, initiated by Gustave Fayet and continued by his descendants. In 1910, for instance, Fayet invited Odilon Redon to take over the walls of the library to create a monumental decor, which constitutes the painter's artistic testament and the collector's crowning achievement.
The removal of Odilon Redon's canvases made it possible to rediscover a series of figures painted directly onto the stone by the artist. Beyond their historical interest, these sketches, uncovered beneath Night, will be visible only for the duration of this temporary installation, for the first and likely only time.
Bernard Frize "Auris" et "Rumen", 2007
Acrylique sur toile 219.5 x 180.0 cm. Collection Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris. © Adagp, Paris, 2026 | Acrylique sur toile, 220.0 x 180.0 cm. Collection Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris. © Adagp, Paris, 2026. Présence et résonance à l’Abbaye de Fontfroide - © Rogier Fackeldey
This encounter is also one between the Abbey of Fontfroide and the Fondation, illustrating the partnership established in 2024 between the two institutions.
Omar Ba
After training at the Beaux-Arts in Dakar, Omar Ba moved to Geneva in 2003. His painting, often carried out on cardboard - a support he considered more manageable than canvas and more absorbent than paper - retains abstract beginnings of the artist a great ornamental quality and a diversity of techniques (ink, pencil, oil painting, gouache…).
But since his arrival in Europe, Ba gathers his art with symbols and metaphors: his great characters are related to heroes of tales where current events and disparate mythology mingle, stories nourished by African traditions and his own inventions.
Bernard Frize
Since the late 1970s, Bernard Frize has contributed to reviving the language of abstraction by challenging the idea of “painting as object.”
He creates distance by painting in a uniform manner according to established protocols; the labor itself is often delegated to assistants. These rules reject all feeling, giving precedence to materials and external constraints. Frize provokes accident and chance, creating a tension between the execution of a process and the unforeseen events that accompany it.
L’Abbaye de Fontfroide
Fondée en 1093 dans le massif des Corbières, à quelques kilomètres de Narbonne, l’Abbaye de Fontfroide est l’un des plus remarquables ensembles monastiques cisterciens d’Europe. Depuis plus de neuf siècles, elle témoigne de l’histoire religieuse, politique, artistique et culturelle du Languedoc, tout en incarnant un patrimoine vivant, ouvert à la transmission, à la création et à l’accueil.
