CONFERENCES
In order to complete its architectural Renaissance, it seemed important that Château de Bournazel should regain, year after year, a central place in the Humanist culture of the 16th century. To allow specialists in French Renaissance culture, be they art historians, researchers, curators, linguists, philosophers, architects, musicologists or specialists in literature, to come together, as well as to offer lovers of the 16th century the pleasure of a cultivated or scientific debate, seemed a necessity.
Thus, began the ‘Bournazel Colloques’, a sort of provincial interlude in the world of conferences, study days and seminars on the Renaissance.
Each year, specialists from this period present works or studies in progress, certain reflections or avenues of research, confront questions or discoveries, raise hypotheses or echo innovative postures.
Note: the majority of presentations will be given in French.
CONFERENCES 2026
Friday, May 29 & Saturday, May 30
Philippe de Champaigne: Places, Faces, Objects
International Symposium, under the scientific direction of
Laurence Plazenet & Philippe Cousinié
Many specific aspects of Philippe de Champaigne’s work remain to be explored. This symposium aims to address these questions through original case studies, bringing together not only Champaigne “specialists” but also researchers active in various complementary disciplines—literature, spirituality, philosophy, history, and art history—who have encountered one or another original aspect of the painter’s work in their research.
Thus, when discussing the painter’s “Places,” we think of the spaces, landscapes, and institutions that Champaigne inhabited, traversed, represented, and constructed pictorially.
With Faces, we would like to ask the question of what is facing in Champaigne: faces, portraits, frontality, or pictorial surface, or even the elaboration of antagonisms between his subjects according to their theological and spiritual choices.
By inviting us to observe the Objects in Champaigne’s work, we consider the material culture depicted in his paintings, the world of things and accessories he possesses, manipulates, and represents, without neglecting painting itself as an object.
Deliberately broad, these avenues aim to allow for new analyses and a re-examination of,
Pass for May 29-30 with lunches:
Adult: €60 – Under 16: €50
Saturday, June 27 at 5:30 p.m.
“God is not conservative. God is for justice.” Cardinal Marty, from Aveyron to Notre-Dame de Paris (parish priest of Bournazel from 1940 to 1943)
Lecture by Martin Dumont
Martin Dumont holds a doctorate in history and is the Secretary General of the Institute for Research on the Study of Religions (Sorbonne University). He works on the relationship between France and the Holy See, from the French Revolution to the present day, and on the place of French Catholicism in society, and its transformations, during this same period. His publications include *The Holy See and the Political Organization of French Catholics in the Aftermath of the Ralliement, 1890-1902* (Honoré Champion, 2012) and a synthesis intended for a general audience, *France in the Thought of the Popes, from Pius VI to Francis* (Cerf, 2018). He is currently preparing a biography of Pope Leo XIII.
Free. Book your place online.
Themes from previous years:
«The Quest for Fortune in the Renaissance», 2012
«The passion for ornament in the Renaissance», 2013
«The taste of travel in the Renaissance», 2014
«The part of the gesture in the Renaissance», 2015
«Games and entertainment in the Renaissance», 2016
«Flesh and good food in the Renaissance», 2017
«The world of objects in the Renaissance», 2018
«Presence and imagination from death to the Renaissance», 2019
«Portraits of Renaissance Women» 2021
«Birth and creation in the Renaissance» 2022
«The City in Celebration during the Renaissance» 2023
“The Bird in the Renaissance” 2024
Proceedings of the conferences
These works are on sale at the reception desk of the château. For a shipping quote, please contact us by email: chateau.de.bournazel@gmail.com
Individual Price: 15 €
Purchase of seven: 70 €
Colloque 2012, 162 p. – 15 €
Colloque 2014, 134 p. – 15 €
Colloque 2016, 174 p. – 15 €
The Association of the Friends of Château de Bournazel was created in January 2012 with the aim of promoting this exceptional Historic Monument, by organising cultural events contributing to the enhancement of the artistic heritage of the Renaissance. The association, through its actions, aims to encourage the reception of the public but also of researchers specialising in the period. In the same way, the association provides human, material and financial support for the conservation, restoration, protection and accessibility of the château.
To support the association and participate in the development of the Château de Bournazel, become a member.