A Second Brush with Greatness: French Impressionism Exhibition Returns to the National Gallery of Victoria

This superb Impressionist painting by Claude Monet of the Grand Canal, Venice from 1908, a star at the NGV exhibition from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston collection. Cover picture: Eugene Louis Boudin's 'Fashionable Figures on the Beach', 1865. 

After a long, pandemic-imposed silence, the shimmering light and bold brushstrokes of French Impressionism are set to dazzle Melbourne once more. The National Gallery of Victoria's French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has made a triumphant return, after the blockbuster exhibition was cut short in 2021. For art lovers who missed it the first time ~ and those eager to see it anew ~ this is no mere encore. With over 100 radiant works by Monet, Morisot, Renoir, Degas, and more, including newly added treasures never before seen in Australia, the show promises to be a luminous celebration of artistic resilience, rediscovery, and cultural revival, writes Jeanne-Marie Cilento

One of the woman painters in the show:

Lousie Abbema's Renee Delmas de Pont-Jest, 

1875. National Gallery of Victoria

THE exhibition of French Impressionist paintings from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has opened at the National Gallery of Victoria, offering Melbourne audiences a second opportunity to view works that were largely kept behind closed doors during their original 2021 run, which was cut short by pandemic restrictions.

The NGV presentation is part of the Melbourne Winter Masterpieces series, which brings major international exhibitions to the city each year. 

The 2021 version of the Impressionist show was installed but closed within days due to a state-wide COVID-19 lockdown. While some works were briefly on view, most of the public never saw them in person. This restaging is both a practical recovery and a gesture of cultural continuity.

More than one hundred works will be on display, including paintings by Claude Monet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Camille Pissarro, Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot. The collection spans the full arc of the Impressionist movement, from early experiments with light and colour to later, more structured compositions.

“French Impressionism is truly a revelation bringing together masterpieces of this transformational moment in the history of art and foregrounds the voices of the artists at the centre of it all.”

Victorine Meurent's Self-Portrat, 1876.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

This is not a simple remount. The exhibition, called French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, includes several works not previously shown in Australia. Among them is a self-portrait by Victorine Meurent (see at right) best known as Édouard Manet’s favored model in paintings such as Olympia and Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe. Her inclusion reflects a growing interest in recovering the voices of women artists who were active in ~ but often excluded from ~ the movements they helped shape.

Another new addition is The Garlic Seller by Jean-François Raffaëlli, a painter associated with the realist end of the Impressionist spectrum. His work captures the street life and rural outskirts of Paris with the same spontaneity and looseness of brush as his better-known contemporaries. Also included is Edgar Degas’s Degas’s Father Listening to Lorenzo Pagans Playing the Guitar, a double portrait that explores themes of domestic intimacy and sound, recently conserved and shown for the first time post-restoration. 

The show is being billed as an opportunity to reintroduce the public to works that were, in many cases, hung but never seen. “We are delighted to have a second chance to share this meaningful exhibition with the people of Australia,” said Matthew Teitelbaum, director of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. “French Impressionism is truly a revelation that brings together masterpieces of this transformational moment in the history of art and foregrounds the voices of the artists at the centre of it all.”

The exhibition also emphasizes the social and structural shifts that formed the backdrop to Impressionism’s rise: industrialization, urbanization, and the changing rhythms of daily life in modern France.

Berthe Morisot's daughter and step-niece

depicted in her work, Embroidery, 1889. 

National Gallery of Victoria

The paintings span from early plein air experiments of the 1860s through to the sun-drenched garden scenes of the 1890s and early 1900s.

A group of sixteen works by Claude Monet anchors the presentation, including several paintings from his Giverny period. 

But the exhibition also emphasizes the social and structural shifts that formed the backdrop to Impressionism’s rise ~ industrialization, urbanization, and the changing rhythms of daily life in modern France.

Tony Ellwood, director of the NGV, emphasized the depth of the Boston collection: “Their collection has the unique ability to narrate the entire trajectory of the Impressionist movement, from its precursors to its zenith, with rich detail and nuance." This exhibition is an opportunity to explore the full range of artists associated with it.

Many of the paintings were part of independent exhibitions organized by the artists themselves after being repeatedly rejected by the Salon, the official annual art show of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris

Claude Monet's delightful painting of Camille

 Monet and a child playing in the artist's 

garden at Argenteuil, was created in 1875.

Musuem of Fine Arts, Boston 

Alongside well-known names, it includes paintings by lesser-known figures such as Louise Abbéma and works on loan from the NGV’s own collection, including Berthe Morisot’s Embroidery (1889) and Paul Signac’s Gasometers at Clichy (1886), which hint at the evolution toward Post-Impressionism and Divisionism.

While the show features paintings, it also incorporates archival material and contextual design to evoke the cultural atmosphere of 19th-century Paris and Boston. Letters, early reviews, and period decor are included to give audiences a sense of how these works were seen ~ and often criticized ~ in their own time. The design is intended not only to complement the art but to foreground the artists’ own words and intentions.

Many of the paintings were part of independent exhibitions organized by the artists themselves after being repeatedly rejected by the Salon, the official annual art show of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Works like Degas’s At the Races in the Countryside and Renoir’s Mixed Flowers in an Earthenware Pot were once considered radical for their loose handling and informal subjects.

The show incorporates archival material and contextual design to evoke the cultural atmosphere of 19th-century Paris and Boston

Paul Cezanne's Fruit and a Jug on a Table, 1890-94.

Musuem of Fine Arts, Boston 

The Boston MFA has one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of French Impressionist art outside France, a result of 19th-century American collectors’ appetite for modern European painting. 

The relationship between the NGV and the MFA dates back more than a decade and has included loans, exchanges, and research partnerships.

From a civic standpoint, the exhibition is expected to draw substantial attendance. "It brings the world of art to Victoria, giving local audiences the opportunity to see and experience masterpieces that rarely travel,” said Colin Brooks, Victoria’s Minister for Creative Industries. “At the same time, exhibitions of this quality draw visitors from far and wide, injecting millions into our economy. French Impressionism is no exception, and we’re pleased to give this extraordinary exhibition the run it deserves.”

The exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria will run through October 5th 2025. It is exclusive to Melbourne.

What the Notre Dame Restoration Says About France’s Past and its Future

The facade of Notre Dame de Paris after a five-year restoration. A fire in 2019 devastated the world heritage building and toppled its spire. More than 250 companies and hundreds of experts worked to restore the cathedral. Photograph above: AFP/Christophe Petit Tesson/Pool. 

By Bradley Stephens, University of Bristol:

Visitors rediscovering Paris’s Notre Dame cathedral will be stepping into a highly charged conversation about France’s past and its future. Both sacred and secular, the cathedral tellingly illustrates the conflict between tradition and reform in France, as a historically Catholic and imperial power tries to adapt to its multicultural and postcolonial present.

After the blaze that engulfed Notre Dame in April 2019, the French government quickly announced a competition to redesign the cathedral’s roof and spire. But the following month, 55% of respondents to a public poll favoured preserving the original design.

A row eventually erupted between Jean-Louis Georgelin, the army general in charge of Notre Dame’s reconstruction, and the cathedral’s chief architect, Philippe Villeneuve. Their exchange (Georgelin told Villeneuve to “shut his mouth”) typified the tension between those who believed something new could emerge from the ashes, and those who wanted Notre Dame to be rebuilt exactly as it was.

Ironically, the “original” edifice many French people wished to recreate was, itself, a new creation. It was architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc’s modern reimagining of medievalism, designed during his mid-19th-century restoration of the cathedral. He argued that “to restore a building is not to preserve it” but to “reinstate it”. Viollet-le-Duc understood the preservation of the past as an act of rehabilitation that required a modern touch if history was to live on.

Macron’s soft power

In a similar vein, by the summer of 2020, President Emmanuel Macron had dropped the idea of a dramatic revamp. The French National Commission of Heritage and Architecture even recommended eschewing modern, potentially more sustainable, building materials.

They did, however, envisage modernising the cathedral’s access and surroundings to better manage its 14 million annual visitors. Their approval of the related interior refurbishments and new lighting effects deepened the general discord.

The essayist Alain Finkielkraut and the historian Pierre Nora blasted the plans as “kitsch” in the New York Times. Notre Dame’s then rector, Patrick Chauvet, countered that they would make more sense for visitors and connect the cathedral’s medieval origins with the modern day.

Neither view has yet resolved the quarrel over Macron’s desire to introduce new stained-glass windows in the side-chapels. Despite these ongoing disagreements, reactions to last Friday’s images from inside Notre Dame suggest that the president’s resolve for an ambitious renovation has paid off.

Touring the site, Macron posted a picture on X (formerly known as Twitter) of the assembled crowd. Photographed from the galleries, some 1,300 members of the restoration team stood cradled within the newly bright nave. Its walls had been cleaned, not just of soot, but also of the dirt that had accumulated since Viollet-le-Duc’s restoration.

This was French solidarity cast in its most sublime light. And Macron’s instinct for soft power was on full display. “To realise the impossible together. This is France,” he tweeted.

Macron was using the reborn Notre Dame as a recognisable symbol of endurance and unity to reiterate his faith in French exceptionalism. Expressing France’s deep gratitude for the monument being “repaired, reinvented and rebuilt”, he has channelled this spirit of renewal into a national mood beset by the same decline that has increasingly hamstrung his presidency.

France’s fears of waning international influence and of growing internal dissent have powered a “booming industry” of national self-doubt. The cathedral’s €700 million (£582 million) renovation helps to counterbalance that insecurity. Not least in a year when the Olympics have drawn the eyes of the world to Paris.

Victor Hugo’s Notre Dame

By harnessing Notre Dame’s combination of a sense of institution with the spirit of innovation, Macron was imitating one of his heroes – Victor Hugo. Hugo’s bestselling 1831 novel, Notre-Dame de Paris (The Hunchback of Notre-Dame), was integral in making the cathedral a beloved icon.

Victor Hugo is one of Macron’s heroes. The National Library of France

Hugo mustered public support for the cathedral’s restoration after it had been vandalised during the French Revolution. He roused public sentiment by comparing the building to flesh that had been wrinkled by time and bruised by revolt.

Yet Macron would also do well to remember that this vision of Notre Dame remains as much a warning against complacency as it does an ode to its unifying majesty. That warning is apt in a week when his latest government looks almost certain to fall.

For Hugo, nothing remains unchanged through the ebb and flow of time, making continuity and rupture part of the same universal law of creation. This is why his novel – a “cathedral of poetry”, as historian Jules Michelet put it – thinks in nuanced instead of categorical ways about the fluidity between the past and the future.

Hugo’s Notre Dame is “an edifice of transition”, mirroring France itself. Marked by both Romanesque and gothic styles and built over successive centuries, it is a collective and continuing achievement: at once whole and diverse. For Hugo, it therefore nurtures the multifaceted outlook that he argued exemplifies France’s potential to welcome, inspire and elevate all people.

The western façade and parvis of Notre-Dame in 1699. WikiCommons

At the very heart of Paris, Notre Dame invites visitors to see beyond the dividing lines between this and that, then and now, and them versus us. But Hugo also insists that the “vast symphony” he hears ringing in Notre Dame’s bells and across its history has the sound of a storm.

In his romantic understanding of the way opposites are intimately interconnected, foreboding uncertainty and forthright conviction ultimately go hand in hand.

The future is not set in stone and so obliges us to be vigilant and to continue working. With an additional €140 million from worldwide donations to invest in Notre Dame’s future preservation, France is well positioned to meet this obligation. The cathedral’s fortunes nevertheless serve as a reminder that the social togetherness dreamt of in France’s revolutionary history – and in its future ambitions – requires concrete labour, not just vivid imagination.

Bradley Stephens, Professor of French Literature, University of Bristol

Do We See Colour the Same Way? What Scientists Can Learn from Artists

Photograph: TSViPhoto/Shuttestock. Cover picture by Anna Nguyen of the Resort 2026 collection by Australian label, Romance Was Born.

By Sasha Rakovich

As many people sit at the wheel of their car, they are certain they know what colour is. It’s the red traffic light in front of them, the garish yellow hatchback in the next lane, or the green verge banking to their right.

Colour, as many people understand it, is the property of a thing. That light is green. The sky is blue. But scientifically, that’s not quite true. No one can experience the exact same colour as you do. Colour is a perceptual experience created by our brains.

It’s the interaction between a material, light and the mind. The way a material absorbs, and scatters light affects what reaches our eyes. And colour needs to be processed by the brain.

The shape of objects and the context in which you encounter them can also shape the way you perceive colour. If you’ve ever picked a paint colour that looked perfect in the shop but turned into something entirely difference once on your walls, you’ve already encountered this phenomenon.

This notion of colour as experience was recently shown in a study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, who used lasers to manipulate participants’ eyes into seeing a new colour – a blue-green they call olo.

To achieve this, the scientists used lasers to activate specific photoreceptor cells in the retina that detect green wavelengths of light, called M cones. We also have S and L cones, types of photoreceptors that detect short blue, and longer red wavelengths of light respectively. Everyone has slight variations in the number and sensitivity of these cones, so we each experience colour a little differently.

Outside the lab, the reflected light that comes into our eyes illuminates large areas of the retina, which stimulates multiple cone types. The wavelengths perceived by the M and L cones overlap by over 85%. This means that under natural conditions, the two are always activated together, but in varying degrees.

By targeting just the M cones, the scientists at Berkeley have in essence created a pure colour. Olo doesn’t have context or material conditions. It will look the same to different people.

But this isn’t the only example which shows the place of the brain in colour perception.

The most common type of red-green colour blindness, deuteranomaly, occurs when the M and L cones overlap more than they should. This reduces people’s ability to distinguish between colours in that range, without affecting sharpness or brightness.

Language may play a role in colour perception, influencing how easily or accurately we discriminate between colours, especially when languages differ in how they categorise or label colour distinctions. This highlights the gulf between an objective property and the processing of the brain.

The difference between the subjective experience of colour and the fixed, physical means of producing it means that most artists’ search for “pure” paint will fail. British artist Stuart Semple recently claimed he’d recreated olo in paint form. He called the paint yolo. But when people look at it, M and L cones will be activated at the same time. A “pure” paint is still impossible.

Semple’s Black 3.0, along with other ultra-black materials, is marketed as a “pure” black paint. It absorbs nearly all light, using a high concentration of light-absorbing pigments and a matte binder to minimise reflections. But instead of offering a pure colour, it removes colour altogether – delivering a universal experience of “black” by eliminating visual stimulus.

Colour is never static. gkkhjn/Shutterstock

In truth, artists have known colour is a matter of perception for quite some time. The modernist artist Mark Rothko was notoriously meticulous about how his work was displayed. Rothko insisted that his work be hung low, with as little white wall visible as possible, in dim light.

He was shaping the experience of colour his work presented to the onlooker by controlling brightness, contrast and the surroundings. Rothko, like the scientists at Berkeley, recognised that colour is an interaction between material, light and observer. It is not just about manipulating what we don’t see, but about engineering what we do.

I have been running a public engagement programme, Transcending the Invisible, which brings together scientists and artists to explore scientific ideas through art. What I’ve been struck by most is that scientists and artists share this understanding of colour as experience.

The future of colour

Why do so many artists want to patent the blackest black, the bluest blue or the pinkest pink if they know that colour can’t be made “pure” with pigment?

Berkeley researcher Austin Roorda described having a “wow” experience at perceiving something entirely new when he saw olo.

We need to accept that colours like Semple’s yolo can create a similar wow feeling.

The work at Berkeley opens the door to a much more direct experience of colour than we’ve ever had before. Scientists in the future may map the photoreceptors and parts of the brain which process colour, allowing them to beam a range of direct and repeatable experiences into people’s brains.

It’s important to note that colour isn’t just sensory data but something that shapes how we feel, remember and connect to the world. Artists like Rothko, Van Gogh and Kandinsky had an innate understanding of that which scientists are only now starting to piece together.

Sasha Rakovich, Senior Lecturer in Physics, King's College London

Art Among the Olive Trees: Mougins is a Hilltop Haven of French History and Haute Cuisine

La Place de Mougins in the heart of the village is also a highly regarded restaurant in this region famed for its gastronomy. Cover picture and photograph above by Andrea Heinsohn for DAM.

Perched in the Provençal hills above Cannes, the village of Mougins has quietly become one of the French Riviera’s most remarkable cultural enclaves. Long favored by artists and intellectuals, this medieval town blends centuries-old architecture with an unexpectedly modern artistic pulse. With museums devoted to classical antiquities and contemporary women artists, a culinary legacy shaped by world-class chefs, and panoramic views that once inspired Picasso and Churchill alike, it offers a unique experience for travellers seeking more than sun and sand along the Côte d’Azur, writes Ambrogio de Lauro. Photography by Andrea Heinsohn 

Scents of lavender and rosemary fill the winding

streets once home to artists Picasso and Picabia.

ONLY a short drive from the cinematic dazzle of the French Riviera, the medieval village of Mougins seems another world away: steeped in ancient history, yet alive with the pulse of creativity. Here, amid the cypress and olive groves, Picasso once sketched at twilight, Francis Picabia painted with surreal abandon and Jean Cocteau wandered the spiraling lanes.

This sun-dappled commune in the French Alpes-Maritimes department is more than just a picturesque village; it has a resonant artistic legacy and has been a place of cultural refuge that once welcomed and still opens its arms to artists, actors and writers. While its roots stretch back to pre-Roman times, it’s the artistic migration of the 20th century that has etched Mougins into the global cultural map.

In 1924, the avant-garde surrealist Francis Picabia was among the first to fall under Mougins' spell. Drawn by the region’s light, space, and tranquil remove from the bustle of Paris, Picabia set up home in the old village, soon drawing an extraordinary constellation of friends and fellow artists into his orbit. Fernand Léger, Paul Éluard, Isadora Duncan, Man Ray, and Jean Cocteau were frequent visitors. Then came Pablo Picasso.

Amid the cypress and olive groves, Picasso once sketched at twilight, Francis Picabia painted with surreal abandon and Jean Cocteau wandered the spiraling lanes

The commanding sculpture of Pablo Picasso,

commemorating his life and work in the town,

From 1961 until 1973, Picasso lived just outside the village at Notre-Dame-de-Vie, a simple farmhouse beside a 12th-century chapel that looks out over forests and valleys. His studio, now the village’s tourist office, was a hub of activity and artistic output. Neighbors still recall the way he moved quietly through the village, seeking inspiration from the Provençal sun and the surrounding hills. 

Today, a giant sculpture commemorates his presence, but in truth, he never left, his spirit inhabits every sun-bleached stone and winding alley. The allure of Mougins also drew stars from haute couture to the silver screen, from Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent to Edith Piaf and Catherine Deneuve, who all walked its cobbled lanes.

Mougins' connection to modern art is not merely anecdotal; it is actively preserved and celebrated. The Mougins Museum of Classical Art (MACM) stands as a cornerstone of this cultural identity. With more than 800 pieces spanning the ancient to the contemporary, Graeco-Roman sculptures juxtaposed with works by Chagall, Matisse, Hirst, Cézanne, and of course, Picasso and Picabia, it is a museum that challenges the boundaries between epochs. 

The allure of Mougins drew stars from haute couture to the silver screen, from Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent to Catherine Deneuve and Sean Connery

The FAMM museum housed in a traditional building,

is devoted to women artists and is the first in Europe.

The museum is housed in a restored medieval building at the edge of the old village. It is intimate yet rich, organized across four floors that lead the visitor on a journey from Egyptian sarcophagi to neoclassical sketches, culminating in modern and contemporary interpretations of the classical form. The effect is to collapse time, allowing one to see the dialogue between artists across millennia.

Mougins' artistic reinvention continues with the recent opening of FAMM (Femme Artistes du Monde de Mougins) ~ a museum entirely dedicated to the works of women artists. It’s the first of its kind in Europe and already a major cultural landmark. Here, the canvases of Berthe Morisot hang beside the bold self-portraits of Frida Kahlo and contemporary expressions from Tracey Emin and Barbara Hepworth.

With its bright spaces and thoughtfully curated exhibitions, FAMM serves as both a correction and celebration: a platform to reframe the story of art through the eyes and voices of women who, like Picasso and Picabia, sought freedom and inspiration in these hills. It’s a poignant extension of Mougins' legacy as a creative refuge, now offering space for new generations of visionaries.

The village's artistic reinvention continues with the opening of FAMM, a museum dedicated to the works of women artists and the first of its kind in Europe 

Mougin's art scene is not only full of museums

but also, private galleries and public installations.

But the art of Mougins is not confined to its museums. It spills out into the cobblestone streets, into its many private galleries and public installations. Over 20 smaller art galleries are peppered throughout the village, offering everything from abstract sculpture to Provençal landscapes, all nestled within medieval architecture that adds an extra layer of charm.

And then there’s the Mougins Centre of Photography, set in a restored presbytery in the heart of the old village. Its rotating exhibitions highlight the evolving language of contemporary photography, presenting both emerging voices and established names. Just as the MACM draws lines from past to present, this centre ensures that Mougins remains deeply attuned to the shifting pulse of modern visual culture.

Each summer, the village hosts Mougins Monumental, an open-air exhibition of oversized sculptures installed throughout its plazas and hidden corners. This collision of the monumental with the intimate offers visitors a surprise around every corner, art not as something framed and distant, but something to live among.

Mougins Centre of Photography, in a restored presbytery in the heart of the old village, has shows highlighting contemporary photography

Mougins has a lively gastronomic community

of specialty shops and celebrated restaurants. 

If art is the soul of Mougins, then cuisine is its heart. The village’s culinary reputation was established in the 20th century by Roger Vergé, the charismatic chef who brought his “Cuisine du Soleil” to global attention. 

Light, fresh, and rooted in Mediterranean tradition, Vergé’s cooking redefined French gastronomy. His Michelin-starred restaurants, L’Amandier and Le Moulin de Mougins, attracted a star-studded clientele, from Elizabeth Taylor to Sharon Stone. 

Vergé’s influence still flavours the village. L’Amandier remains a landmark, housed in a building that once served as the medieval courthouse for the monks of Saint-Honorat. Today, its windows open to views of pine forests and tiled rooftops, while the kitchen serves dishes that celebrate local ingredients with sun-drenched simplicity. Alain Ducasse, another titan of French cuisine, honed his craft under Vergé here in the 1970s.

If art is the soul of Mougins, then cuisine is its heart. The village’s culinary reputation was established in the 20th century by Roger Vergé, 

To celebrate its culinary history, the town holds

a bi-annual festival that brings the world's greatest

chefs together. 

In honor of this culinary heritage, Mougins created Les Étoiles de Mougins, an international gastronomy festival first held in 2006. The festival brings together world-class chefs for demonstrations, tastings, and debates, turning the entire village into an open-air kitchen every two years. 

Since 2012, Mougins has held the exclusive title of “Ville et Métier d’Art” for gastronomy, a distinction no other French town shares.

While art and food may draw most modern visitors, the stones of Mougins carry the weight of centuries. From its early days as a Ligurian settlement to its medieval fortifications, the village has borne witness to empire and invasion. The town's roots run deep, archaeological finds indicate that the site was first occupied by Ligurian tribes long before the rise of the Roman Empire. 

Over the centuries, the elevated, spiral-shaped design proved a strategic advantage, built to withstand invasion, the medieval village was enclosed by ramparts with three main gates

The soaring 18th century bell-tower 

of the Saint Jaques-le-Majeur church

The Romans eventually established a settlement called Muginum along the ancient Via Aurelia, the road that once connected Rome to Arles. In the 11th century, the land was handed over to the monks of Saint Honorat, who governed the area from the island monastery just off Cannes. The vestiges of this monastic influence remain visible today in the village’s architecture, particularly in the vaulted “Salle des Moines,” now part of a renowned restaurant.

Over the centuries, Mougins’ elevated, spiral-shaped design proved a strategic advantage. Built to withstand invasion, the medieval village was enclosed by ramparts and accessed through three main gates, only one of which, the Porte Sarrazine, remains today. 

Though attacked and partially destroyed during the War of the Austrian Succession, Mougins gradually rebuilt, maintaining much of its circular medieval charm even as new streets were added in the 19th century.

A walk through the village reveals these architectural layers of this history. The Porte Sarrazine still stands as the sentinel of the old spiral-shaped fortress. The narrow streets echo with footsteps from every century, from monks who administered the town for the Abbey of Saint-Honorat to Napoleon himself, who passed through Mougins on his march north from Elba in 1815.

A plaque marks the modest house where Commandant Amédée-François Lamy, the French military figure who would give his name to the Chadian capital (now N’Djamena), was born in 1858. It is one of many small historical markers that lend the village its living yet historic character.

For those who venture beyond the bright lights of Cannes, Mougins offers something rare: a village where art, history, nature, and flavor converge in harmony

The pool of La Réserve by Mougins Luxury Retreats,

which has accommodations throughout the village. 

Mougins' hilltop location isn’t just strategic; it’s spectacular. The view over the Alps is uninterrupted and breathtaking. In the golden light of the late afternoon, the rooftops glow and the valleys turn to velvet.

It’s easy to see why Winston Churchill, a neighbor of Picasso’s, chose to write and paint here, often seated near the chapel of Notre-Dame-de-Vie, where silence reigns and olive trees sway like gentle muses.

Although there is a sense of quiet luxury ~ boutique hotels and curated shops now fill restored buildings ~ the village retains its spirit. It isn’t flashy or overrun. It welcomes, rather than dazzles. It charms rather than overwhelms.

For those who venture beyond the bright lights of Cannes, Mougins offers something rare: a village where art, history, nature, and flavor converge in harmony. 

It is a place where Picasso painted and dined, where Picabia laughed with friends, where sculptures rise from cobbles and perfumes scent the air from pressed flowers. It is a reminder that the Riviera’s soul lies not on the beach, but in the hills above. And in Mougins, that soul still whispers ~ through a shuttered window, from behind a canvas, across a sunlit terrace.

A pretty doorway with a solid

walnut door and stone steps.

Getting There: Mougins is a 15-minute drive from Cannes. The nearest airport is Nice Côte d’Azur, approximately 30 minutes by car.

When to Go: Spring and early autumn are ideal, with warm days and fewer tourists. Visit in June for the Gastronomy Festival or in summer for art events and music festivals.

Don’t Miss:

The Musée d’Art Classique de Mougins (MACM)

The FAMM Museum of Women Artists

A meal at L’Amandier

Sunset at Notre-Dame-de-Vie

Climbing the belltower of the Saint Jaques-le-Majeur church for the spectacular view across Provence to the sea, 

Tip: Take your time. Mougins isn’t a place to rush. It’s a place to wander, to linger, to let the village reveal itself, one spiral street, one delicious bite, one quiet moment at a time.

Tom Cruise’s Stunts in Mission: Impossible Movies are Feats of the Human Body

Tom Cruise doing his own stunts in Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, riding a motorcycle off a cliff before letting go mid-air and falling to the ground. Photograph: FlixPix/Alamy. Cover picture by Andrea Heinsohn for DAM

By Dan Baumgardt

He’s leapt from cliffs, clung to planes mid-takeoff and held his breath underwater for as long as professional freedivers. Now, at 62, Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt for one final mission – and he’s still doing his own stunts.

Cruise in another death-defying scene 

from thenew Mission: Impossible 

- The Final Reckoning. Photograph: 

Paramount Pictures & Skydance via AP

With Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, the saga reaches its high-stakes finale. But behind the scenes of death-defying spectacles lies a fascinating question: just how far can the human body be pushed – and trained – to pull off the seemingly impossible?

And at what cost? In filming the eight Mission: Impossible films, Cruise has suffered a broken ankle, cracked ribs and a torn shoulder.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to consider the capabilities – and limits – of the human body in being able to achieve these awesome heights. How much is it possible to train to achieve the apparently impossible?

Breathing underwater

Performing his own stunts, Tom

Cruise climbs the dizzyingly tall

Burj Khalifa in Mission: Impossible

Ghost Protocol. Photograph: David James

In Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Hunt navigates an underwater vault to recover a stolen ledger. Cruise wanted to film this all-in-one take and sought help from freediving instructors in order to hold his breath for the required time – over six minutes!

The average human can hold their breath for about 30 to 90 seconds. That’s without training. Although there’s an innate diving reflex built into the human body that allows it to temporarily adapt to immersion underwater.

The response is to lower the heart rate and redirect blood to the body’s core, essentially enabling it to lower its metabolic demand and preserve the function of the vital organs, like the brain and heart.

All well and good, but consider now the need to swim, as well as resist the pressure of the water pressing on the lungs. And also while fighting that desperate urge as a result of rising CO₂ to take a deep breath – which, underwater, would be catastrophic.

And if the diver’s oxygen levels fall too low, they might black out and lose consciousness. That’s why shallow water drowning is a real risk here.

That’s where freediving training comes into play. With practice, there are several ways you can increase the time you’re able to remain underwater. These include mastering breathing techniques to retain the maximum amount of air in the lungs. Sustained practice might also lead to increased oxygen storage capacity in the bloodstream.

This process takes months to years to attain and might lengthen the immersion time, on average, to around five minutes. What Cruise managed to achieve was nothing short of exceptional.

The official trailer for Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning.

Free climbing – and that scene

Mission Impossible films often open with Ethan Hunt working his way up some impossibly sheer building or cliff face with the agility of a mountain goat. He appears to be free climbing without a harness, and at the start of Mission: Impossible 2, clinging on with just one hand. While Cruise used safety wires to secure himself, the climbing was 100% real.

Tom Cruise suspended precariously from the ground

in the exciting original Mission: Impossible film

Then, of course, how could we forget that scene? The one in the original Mission: Impossible – where he has to suspend all limbs, centimetres from the ground, to prevent himself from setting off the alarms.

Although Cruise hasn’t revealed his specific training regime for these stunts that I can see – performing any of these actions would require an exceptionally strong back and core.

The muscles of our backs keep the spine straight and upright. Some span the space between back and limb, such as latissimus dorsi, or “lats”. These sheets of muscle, prized by bodybuilders, are also particularly valuable to climbers – allowing you to perform a chin-up, or pull yourself up that rock face.

Besides this, many other muscles are needed for extreme climbing – those that enable a strong grip, allow for reaching and “push offs”, and maintain tension and hold. It’s no wonder climbing is considered one of the best whole-body workouts.

It’s no surprise that Cruise is known to have trained extensively for this. To understand even an element of the difficulty he may have faced, you could try adopting that vault heist pose, with your belly in contact with the floor, and see how long you can hold it. I won’t tell you how pitiful my own attempt was.

What a blast

Another visually striking stunt by

Tom Cruise free running using wires in

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol

Photograph: David James

Hunt has also escaped a fair few explosions in his time, from a helicopter in the Channel tunnel to a detonating fish tank in Prague. In Mission: Impossible 3, on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, another helicopter launching a missile triggers an explosion that sends Hunt smashing into a car. Again, Cruise did it all himself, for the price of two cracked ribs.

Pyrotechnics were used for the explosion, but of course, they couldn’t be used to lift Cruise up and deposit him against the car. The solution? A series of wires were used to drag him sideways. Never has the direction “brace, brace” been so apt.

And just so you know, broken or bruised ribs are far from fun. Some describe them as one of the most painful injuries you can experience, since the simple acts of coughing, sneezing and merely breathing exacerbate the pain.

But Tom Cruise picks himself up yet again, dusts himself off and gets on with it. His motivation? He has reportedly claimed that he wants the audience to experience what it really feels to be in that moment. And what a good sport he is.

This article won’t self-destruct in five seconds.

Dan Baumgardt, Senior Lecturer, School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol

At the Cannes Film Festival, Decency and Dress Codes Clash with Fashion’s Red Carpet Revolution

Robert Pattinson's classic tuxedo and Jennifer Lawrence's silk taffeta, pleated Christian Dior gown, inspired by a 1949 Poulenc original, fitted within the Cannes' dress codes, limiting volume and sheerness on the red carpet. Photograph: Anthony Harvey Shutterstock. Cover picture by Andrea Heinsohn for DAM

By Elizabeth Castaldo Lundén

At the Cannes Film Festival, the spotlight moved from movie stars and directors to the festival’s fashion rules. Cannes reminded guests to follow the standard black-tie dress code for evening events at the Grand Theatre Lumière – “long dresses and tuxedos” – while highlighting acceptable alternatives, such as cocktail dresses and pantsuits for women, and a black or navy suit with a tie for men.

The real stir, however, came from two additions to the formal guidelines: a ban on nudity “for decency reasons” and a restriction on oversize garments.

The new rules caught many stylists and stars by surprise, with some decrying the move as a regressive attempt to police clothing.

It’s hard not to wonder whether this is part of some broader conservative cultural shift around the world.

But I study the cultural and economic forces behind fashion and media, and I think a lot of the criticism of Cannes is unfounded. To me, the festival isn’t changing its identity. It’s reasserting it.

Red carpet control

Concerns about indecency on the red carpet have appeared before – most notably during the first televised Academy Awards in 1953.

In 1952, the National Association of Radio and Television Broadcasters adopted a censorship code in response to concerns about television’s influence on young audiences. Among its rules for “decency and decorum” were guidelines against revealing clothing, suggestive movements or camera angles that emphasized body parts – all to avoid causing “embarrassment” to the viewers.

Actress Inger Stevens at the 39th Academy Awards in 1967, a year before she was reprimanded for her skimpy attire. Bettmann/Getty Images

To ensure that no actress would break the decency dress code, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences hired acclaimed costume designer Edith Head as a fashion consultant for the show in 1953.

In my book “Fashion on the Red Carpet,” I explain how Head equipped backstage staff with kits to deal with any sartorial emergencies that might arise. That same year, the balcony cameras at the Pantages Theatre accidentally peeked down into the actresses’ cleavage as they walked to the stage. From then on, a supply of tulle – a type of versatile fabric that can easily cover revealing openings that expose too much skin – was kept backstage.

The 1960s posed new challenges. Youth fashion trends clashed with traditional dress codes and television censorship. In 1968, after actress Inger Stevens appeared on the red carpet wearing a mini skirt, the Academy sent a letter reminding attendees of the black-tie – preferably floor-length – dress code. When Barbra Streisand’s Scaasi outfit accidentally turned see-through under the lighting in 1969, Head again warned against “freaky, far-out, unusual fashion” ahead of the 1970 ceremony.

However, in the 1970s, the Oscars eliminated Head’s fashion consultant position. Despite maintaining its black-tie dress code, the absence of a fashion consultant opened the door to some provocative attire, ranging from Cher’s see-through, sheer outfits, to Edy Williams’ provocative, barely-there getups.

Once the fashion consultant position was eliminated for the Oscars, many attendees – like actress Edy Williams – tried to stand out from the crowd with provocative attire. Fotos International/Getty Images

Old rules in a new era

Racy red carpet appearances have since become a hallmark of awards shows, particularly in the digital age.

Extravagance and shock are a way for celebrities and brands to stand out amid a glut of social media content, especially as brands increasingly pay a fortune to turn celebrities into walking billboards.

And in an era when red carpet looks are carefully curated ahead of time through partnerships with fashion brands, many celebrities expressed frustration about being unable to sport the outfits they had planned to wear at Cannes.

Stylist Rose Forde lamented the restrictions, saying, “You should be able to express yourself as an artist, with your style however you feel,” while actress Chloë Sevigny described the code as “an old-fashioned archaic rule.”

But I still can’t see the Cannes rules as part of any sort of broader conservative backlash.

Whether at the Oscars or the MTV Video Music Awards, backlash over celebrities baring too much skin has gone on for decades. Cannes hasn’t been spared from controversy, either: There was Michelle Morgan’s bikini in 1946, La Cicciolina’s topless look in 1988, Madonna’s Jean Paul Gaultier lingerie in 1991, Leila Depina’s barely-there pearl outfit in 2023 and Bella Hadid’s sheer pantyhose dress in 2024, to name just a few.

Cape Verdean model Leila Depina arrives for the screening of the film ‘Asteroid City’ during the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Christophe Simon/AFP via Getty Images

The festival has routinely reminded guests of its dress code, regardless of the cultural zeitgeist.

The “decency” rule, for example, is actually required by French law. Article 222-32 of the French Criminal Code classifies showing private parts in public as a sexual offense and can lead to a year in prison and a fine. While the legal definition hinges on intent and setting, the festival, as a public event, technically has to operate within that framework.

Compared to white-tie events like the Nobel Prize ceremony or a state banquet, Cannes’ black-tie requirement is relatively flexible. It allows for cocktail-length dresses and even accommodates pants and flat sandals for women.

Meanwhile, the worry about voluminous clothes points to a practical issue: the movement of bodies in tight spaces.

Unlike the Met Gala – where the fashion spectacle is the focus, and its red carpet is a stage for photo-ops – Cannes is a film festival. The red carpet is the main path thousands of people use to enter the theater.

A dramatic gown – like the one worn at the Met Gala by Cardi B in 2024 – could block others and cause delays. While a photo-op may be the primary goal for celebrities and the brands they promote, the festival has a screening schedule to stick to, and attendees must be able to easily access the venue and their seats.

Red carpet rules are fluid. Sometimes they adapt to cultural shifts. Sometimes they resist them. And sometimes, they’re there to make sure you can fit in your seat in the movie theatre.

Elizabeth Castaldo Lundén, Research Fellow at the School of Cinematic Arts, University of Southern California

Paris’s Iconic Centre Pompidou ~ A Cultural Superstar Facing Economic and Environmental Challenges as it Closes for Renovation this September

The Centre Pomidou will have to close its doors work for renovation work between 2025 and 2030

By Marie Ballarini, Université Paris Dauphine – PSL

Whether known as the Centre Pompidou or simply Beaubourg, this Parisian landmark is set to close its doors from this September until 2030 for extensive renovations. Criticised and even mocked at its opening, the Centre Pompidou has since earned its place as an iconic fixture in the Parisian landscape and a major player on the international museum scene. We take a closer look at the institution’s fragile and unconventional business model at its 50th anniversary.

Inaugurated in 1977, France’s Centre Pompidou will soon celebrate its 50th birthday. This milestone will coincide with its full closure from 2025 to 2030 for much-needed renovations to upgrade and restructure the building.

During the closure, the museum will continue to expand in other ways. A new site will open in Massy (in Essonne department), designed to house its reserves and serve as an exhibition and cultural space. Additionally, the Centre Pompidou plans to strengthen its international presence through temporary exhibitions abroad.

Bruno S. Frey developed the concept of a “museum superstar”, an iconic cultural institution that attracts significant numbers of visitors and generates considerable revenue from commercialising their spaces and collections. These museums, including the Centre Pompidou, play a crucial role in their local economies.

An unsustainable business model

Unlike other superstar museums such as the Louvre or the Musée d’Orsay, however, the Centre Pompidou lacks a blockbuster home attraction like the Mona Lisa. This absence of universally recognisable works makes its economic model more fragile, despite its dynamic programming and bold architecture.

In 2022, the Centre Pompidou’s total budget revenue was just under 132 million euros ($144 million currently), with 69% coming from public funding – a significantly higher proportion than at the Louvre (44%) or the Musée d’Orsay (45%). The centre’s self-generated revenue, though slightly improved since the post-pandemic period, accounted for just 31% of its total income, down from 34% in 2019. Ticketing revenue, crucial for the Centre’s financial independence, dropped by 18% compared to 2019, despite a 2022 overhaul of the fee structure. On a positive note, patronage income increased by 8%, to 6.1 million euros, and revenue from off-site exhibitions and international locations surged by 43%, partially compensating for losses in other areas, according to the centre’s annual reports.

Despite this, France’s national audit office has noted that the museum’s diversification strategy lacks a clear structure and falls short of transparency requirements regarding costs. The centre has frequently adopted a pragmatic approach to solicitations, undermining the long-term sustainability of its economic model.

France 24.

Balancing economic growth and environmental responsibility

The Centre Pompidou’s economic strategy faces two key challenges, particularly its ticketing: rising competition from private contemporary art institutions in Paris and the ecological consequences of higher visitor numbers.

New contemporary art institutions such as the Fondation Louis Vuitton and the Pinault Collection have reshaped Paris’ cultural landscape. While these venues could be seen as rivals, they also boost Paris’s overall status as a hub for contemporary art, attracting a diverse and informed international audience. The Centre Pompidou benefits from this dynamic ecosystem, though it must compete with these institutions’ financial resources and collections.

Competing yet complementary

Despite the increasing competition in recent years, the Centre Pompidou continues to thrive as a leading venue for modern and contemporary art, thanks to its rich collection and innovative programming. Recent examples include “Évidence” and the immersive exhibition “Noire”.

Paris’s global prominence in the contemporary art world presents both opportunities and challenges for the Centre Pompidou. On one hand, it faces competition from institutions that have iconic collections and even greater financial resources. On the other, it benefits from this vibrant environment, allowing it to maintain its status as a premier cultural destination and strengthen its foothold in the global art market. To fully capitalise on this ecosystem, however, the centre must continue to innovate and adapt to evolving economic and cultural realities, while staying true to its mission of promoting contemporary art.

Environmental challenges

One of the museum’s most pressing challenges is balancing economic growth with environmental sustainability. According to its “Responding to the Environmental Emergency: Action Plan 2023-2025,” the Centre Pompidou is working to reduce its carbon footprint. This is crucial, as 82% of a museum’s carbon impact comes from visitors, particularly international ones who travel by air – an especially polluting for of transport.

Interestingly, the museum’s somewhat lower appeal to foreign tourists, which the national audit office has criticised, may actually prove beneficial in terms of environmental impact. By attracting more domestic visitors, the centre can minimise the carbon emissions associated with international travel, making it a more sustainable institution in the long term.

A sustainable but less profitable approach?

This focus on a national audience could prove to be a sustainable long-term strategy, at a time when ecological concerns are a growing concern. It also strengthens the museum’s local roots, making it more resilient to fluctuations in international tourism and global crises. Nevertheless, this strategy comes at an economic cost, as local audiences are more likely to benefit from reduced or free rates.

While international exhibitions and expansion can provide additional revenue, they also present ecological challenges. Transporting works of art across the globe adds to the museum’s carbon footprint, even as it strives to bring exhibitions closer to international audiences. Additionally, major real estate projects, such as the renovation of the Centre’s historic building and the construction of a new site in Massy, are key to its modernisation but come with considerable environmental costs.

As it prepares for five years of renovations, the Centre must find a way to balance its financial needs with the growing urgency of environmental responsibility. To secure its future, the museum will need to strengthen its financial viability while continuing to pioneer in the world of contemporary art and adapt to the changing demands of the 21st century.

Marie Ballarini, Professeur assistant, Université Paris Dauphine – PSL