MYRIAM MIHINDOU
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears
Responding to an invitation from the
musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac,
the Franco-Gabonese artist Myriam
Mihindou has created a new series of
visual and sound works in tribute to
the Punu mourners of Gabon.
As such, she explores a part of her
cultural heritage by relating the stories
and myths of an ancestral practice to
the museum's collections and sound
archives.
A "total, performative, organic
and physical" work
Myriam Mihindou's works are a
dialogue with the mourning rituals
of the Punu people. Ceramics,
basketwork, drawings, salt and
wood sculptures resonate with the
memories and invite a reflection on
how they are passed on.
A sensory experience: see, touch,
listen
A plant sculpture weaves through the
exhibition space, its sound activated
when gently touched. Through this
exhibition, Myriam Mihindou invites
us all to explore beyond the visible
and experience the works through
other senses.
Courtesy of the artist and Galerie
Maïa Muller, Paris.
Exhibition curators:
Sarah LIGNER, head of the historical
and contemporary globalisation
heritage unit at the musée du quai
Branly - Jacques Chirac
Nathalie GONTHIER, exhibition
curator
1
THE MARC LADREIT
DE LACHARRIÈRE GALLERY
Inaugurated in 2021, this venue offers, each year, in
its space dedicated to temporary exhibitions, a
unique look at the history of non-Western arts. It is
with this in mind that the « Myriam Mihindou.
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears» exhibition is supported
by the "Fonds Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière pour la
connaissance et la valorisation des civilisations
africaines et océaniennes".
WOULD YOU LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE?
/ Take a guided tour (from 12 years old)
€16 full price / €8 reduced price
/ Discover the exhibition catalogue
Édition musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
14.50 €, on sale at the bookshop
/ Consult a selection of books at the Jacques
Kerchache reading room (museum hall;
free access)
/ Conference «Does art heal?»
with the artist Myriam Mihindou and the
philosopher Fabienne Brugère (Paris-Nanterre
University), Wednesday 10 April at 6:30 pm
(théâtre Claude Lévi-Strauss, free access)
This exhibition was mounted with the generous
support of Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière.
Cover: Pierre angulaire, 2023, Myriam Mihindou © musée du
quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, photo Pauline Guyon – Galerie
Maïa Muller – protected by ADAGP.
Image 1 : Lingi, 2022, Myriam Mihindou. Courtesy of the artist
and Galerie Maïa Muller, Paris.
INFORMATION
/ www.quaibranly.fr/en
/ contact@quaibranly.fr
/ Information: 01 56 61 70 00
/ Booking: 01 56 61 71 72
OPENING TIMES
/ Tuesday to Sunday from 10.30am to 7pm,
(admission after 9.30am reserved for holders
of a museum membership card, except on
Sundays), late nights every Thursday until 10pm
/ Exceptional opening on Mondays during the
winter, spring and autumn school holidays
/ Free admission for everyone on the first
Sunday of each month
BECOME A MEMBER
Enjoy one year of unlimited access to
→ 6 FEBRUARY – 10 NOVEMBER 2024
the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.
/ Pass Solo : €38/year - €70/2 years
/ Pass Duo : €63/year - €120/2 years
GREAT DEAL
Join on the day of your visit, we deduct the
amount of your museum ticket full price, of
your subscription price. Go to the membership
area with your ticket of the day.
* Pass Solo : 24€/an – 56€/2ans
ilimb,
* Pass Duo : 49€/an – 106€/2ans
FOLLOW US
the Essence
www.quaibranly.fr/en
#MyriamMihindou
of Tears
VISIT GUIDE
* valid only on the day of your visit, with the purchase
of a Solo or Duo Pass (cannot be combined), on presentation
of a paid ticket at the membership centre from Tuesday
to Saturday from 10.30am to 5.30pm and on Sunday from
2pm to 5.30pm (closed on the first Sunday of the month).
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in 1964 in Libreville, Gabon,
Myriam Mihindou is a Franco-
Gabonese artist who trained at the
Bordeaux School of Fine Arts. While
she primarily lives and works in France,
her life has been marked by periods
spent across various continents. She
maintains a deep connection to Gabon
and the Punu culture of her father's
heritage. She works in photography,
performance, video, drawing and
sculpture. Mihindou's personal
experiences intersect with the histories
of places and bodies. She delves into
themes of dominance and exploitation,
shedding light on hidden memories.
The concepts of care, healing and ritual
are central to her art.
Her work has already been presented
at the musée du quai Branly - Jacques
Chirac in the exhibitions "Masters
of disorder" in 2012 and "Ex Africa"
in 2021. She has taken part in many
other exhibitions in France and
internationally, notably at the Centre
Pompidou (Paris), the Palais de Tokyo
(Paris), the Transpalette Contemporary
Art Centre (Bourges), the Picasso
Chapel - National Pablo Picasso
Museum - War and Peace (Vallauris),
Fondation Dapper (Paris), Centro
Atlántico de Arte Moderno (Las Palmas,
Canary Islands), La Verrière - Hermès
Corporate Foundation (Brussels),
Museo Reina Sofia (Madrid), Museum
für Moderne Kunst (Frankfurt),
Contemporary Arts Center (Cincinnati,
USA). In 2022, Myriam Mihindou won
the AWARE Nouveau Regard award.
Interview with Myriam Mihindou
The museum has given you free
reign for this exhibition. Can you tell
us about the meaning behind the
title "Ilimb, the Essence of Tears"?
Myriam Mihindou : Ilimb is a word
from the Punu language in Gabon.
Being Franco-Gabonese, I grew up
immersed in my father's Punu culture
which is matriarchal* and patrilineal**.
This exhibition is a narrative about
tears, specifically those I shed when my
father died and the mourning rituals led
by the mourners. These mourners heal
our bodies, minds and souls. Torches
made of resin are lit during the rituals.
It's not just humans who weep; the fire
weeps too. Ilimb refers to the tear trails
left by the burning resin. The title of
this exhibition means both "essence"
and "senses". The soul and tears span
many of my works, serving as both
subjects for reflection and materials for
creation.
* society in which women wield influence and authority
** society in which descent and inheritance are linked to the
father's lineage
How have you shaped this theme of How did you orchestrate this
tears that is so close to your heart? dialogue between contemporary
creation and the museum's
M. M. : The starting point was
collections?
undoubtedly the glass tower in this
museum, which houses musical M. M. : What probably differentiates
instruments from around the world. contemporary from ancient is
To me, it's the museum's choir. I saw how we interpret and present
it and breathed in the skin of Gabon's sources. Of course, objects often
sacred harps, with their shafts carved belong to an era, but their function
into female faces. I wanted to reveal transcends their physical form and
what was hidden in this museum their practice still exists in villages.
setting that places objects behind These objects continue to narrate
glass. I recreated some of these harps myths, stories and lives, in different
in ceramic, giving them a new skin, forms and expressions. These are
including surfaces layered with oxides social, aesthetic, symbolic, political,
and soils from Gabon. therapeutic, magical and scientific
vehicles. During my research at the
Can you tell us about the museum, I could hear the whispers of
exhibition layout? the collection's objects. The museum
maintains a distance between bodies
M. M. : The exhibition conveys
and also creates a distance with the
different tones and times of mourning
object. Instead, I propose immersion.
rituals and the art of the mourners.
The idea is to infuse the space with
Annie-Flore Batchiellilys, a musician
sensuality, to reconnect with all our
and granddaughter of a Punu mourner,
senses of perception.
lends her lament to set the vibratory
rhythm. Nearby, a sculpted hand of
a mourning woman holds two sticks
to "mark the rhythm". A psychopomp
horse, one that guides the souls of the
dead, carries a piece of cloth on which
a coin is placed during the ritual to
announce the death. Pottery and salt
sculptures are the memories of all tears
shed. A woven, tactile and sound work,
created with sound designer Didier
Blanchard, runs through the entire
exhibition space. Finally, the ceramic
plates reflect on the lingui, the moment
of listening and meditation at the end
of the ritual.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in 1964 in Libreville, Gabon,
Myriam Mihindou is a Franco-
Gabonese artist who trained at the
Bordeaux School of Fine Arts. While
she primarily lives and works in France,
her life has been marked by periods
spent across various continents. She
maintains a deep connection to Gabon
and the Punu culture of her father's
heritage. She works in photography,
performance, video, drawing and
sculpture. Mihindou's personal
experiences intersect with the histories
of places and bodies. She delves into
themes of dominance and exploitation,
shedding light on hidden memories.
The concepts of care, healing and ritual
are central to her art.
Her work has already been presented
at the musée du quai Branly - Jacques
Chirac in the exhibitions "Masters
of disorder" in 2012 and "Ex Africa"
in 2021. She has taken part in many
other exhibitions in France and
internationally, notably at the Centre
Pompidou (Paris), the Palais de Tokyo
(Paris), the Transpalette Contemporary
Art Centre (Bourges), the Picasso
Chapel - National Pablo Picasso
Museum - War and Peace (Vallauris),
Fondation Dapper (Paris), Centro
Atlántico de Arte Moderno (Las Palmas,
Canary Islands), La Verrière - Hermès
Corporate Foundation (Brussels),
Museo Reina Sofia (Madrid), Museum
für Moderne Kunst (Frankfurt),
Contemporary Arts Center (Cincinnati,
USA). In 2022, Myriam Mihindou won
the AWARE Nouveau Regard award.
Interview with Myriam Mihindou
The museum has given you free
reign for this exhibition. Can you tell
us about the meaning behind the
title "Ilimb, the Essence of Tears"?
Myriam Mihindou : Ilimb is a word
from the Punu language in Gabon.
Being Franco-Gabonese, I grew up
immersed in my father's Punu culture
which is matriarchal* and patrilineal**.
This exhibition is a narrative about
tears, specifically those I shed when my
father died and the mourning rituals led
by the mourners. These mourners heal
our bodies, minds and souls. Torches
made of resin are lit during the rituals.
It's not just humans who weep; the fire
weeps too. Ilimb refers to the tear trails
left by the burning resin. The title of
this exhibition means both "essence"
and "senses". The soul and tears span
many of my works, serving as both
subjects for reflection and materials for
creation.
* society in which women wield influence and authority
** society in which descent and inheritance are linked to the
father's lineage
How have you shaped this theme of How did you orchestrate this
tears that is so close to your heart? dialogue between contemporary
creation and the museum's
M. M. : The starting point was
collections?
undoubtedly the glass tower in this
museum, which houses musical M. M. : What probably differentiates
instruments from around the world. contemporary from ancient is
To me, it's the museum's choir. I saw how we interpret and present
it and breathed in the skin of Gabon's sources. Of course, objects often
sacred harps, with their shafts carved belong to an era, but their function
into female faces. I wanted to reveal transcends their physical form and
what was hidden in this museum their practice still exists in villages.
setting that places objects behind These objects continue to narrate
glass. I recreated some of these harps myths, stories and lives, in different
in ceramic, giving them a new skin, forms and expressions. These are
including surfaces layered with oxides social, aesthetic, symbolic, political,
and soils from Gabon. therapeutic, magical and scientific
vehicles. During my research at the
Can you tell us about the museum, I could hear the whispers of
exhibition layout? the collection's objects. The museum
maintains a distance between bodies
M. M. : The exhibition conveys
and also creates a distance with the
different tones and times of mourning
object. Instead, I propose immersion.
rituals and the art of the mourners.
The idea is to infuse the space with
Annie-Flore Batchiellilys, a musician
sensuality, to reconnect with all our
and granddaughter of a Punu mourner,
senses of perception.
lends her lament to set the vibratory
rhythm. Nearby, a sculpted hand of
a mourning woman holds two sticks
to "mark the rhythm". A psychopomp
horse, one that guides the souls of the
dead, carries a piece of cloth on which
a coin is placed during the ritual to
announce the death. Pottery and salt
sculptures are the memories of all tears
shed. A woven, tactile and sound work,
created with sound designer Didier
Blanchard, runs through the entire
exhibition space. Finally, the ceramic
plates reflect on the lingui, the moment
of listening and meditation at the end
of the ritual.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Born in 1964 in Libreville, Gabon,
Myriam Mihindou is a Franco-
Gabonese artist who trained at the
Bordeaux School of Fine Arts. While
she primarily lives and works in France,
her life has been marked by periods
spent across various continents. She
maintains a deep connection to Gabon
and the Punu culture of her father's
heritage. She works in photography,
performance, video, drawing and
sculpture. Mihindou's personal
experiences intersect with the histories
of places and bodies. She delves into
themes of dominance and exploitation,
shedding light on hidden memories.
The concepts of care, healing and ritual
are central to her art.
Her work has already been presented
at the musée du quai Branly - Jacques
Chirac in the exhibitions "Masters
of disorder" in 2012 and "Ex Africa"
in 2021. She has taken part in many
other exhibitions in France and
internationally, notably at the Centre
Pompidou (Paris), the Palais de Tokyo
(Paris), the Transpalette Contemporary
Art Centre (Bourges), the Picasso
Chapel - National Pablo Picasso
Museum - War and Peace (Vallauris),
Fondation Dapper (Paris), Centro
Atlántico de Arte Moderno (Las Palmas,
Canary Islands), La Verrière - Hermès
Corporate Foundation (Brussels),
Museo Reina Sofia (Madrid), Museum
für Moderne Kunst (Frankfurt),
Contemporary Arts Center (Cincinnati,
USA). In 2022, Myriam Mihindou won
the AWARE Nouveau Regard award.
Interview with Myriam Mihindou
The museum has given you free
reign for this exhibition. Can you tell
us about the meaning behind the
title "Ilimb, the Essence of Tears"?
Myriam Mihindou : Ilimb is a word
from the Punu language in Gabon.
Being Franco-Gabonese, I grew up
immersed in my father's Punu culture
which is matriarchal* and patrilineal**.
This exhibition is a narrative about
tears, specifically those I shed when my
father died and the mourning rituals led
by the mourners. These mourners heal
our bodies, minds and souls. Torches
made of resin are lit during the rituals.
It's not just humans who weep; the fire
weeps too. Ilimb refers to the tear trails
left by the burning resin. The title of
this exhibition means both "essence"
and "senses". The soul and tears span
many of my works, serving as both
subjects for reflection and materials for
creation.
* society in which women wield influence and authority
** society in which descent and inheritance are linked to the
father's lineage
How have you shaped this theme of How did you orchestrate this
tears that is so close to your heart? dialogue between contemporary
creation and the museum's
M. M. : The starting point was
collections?
undoubtedly the glass tower in this
museum, which houses musical M. M. : What probably differentiates
instruments from around the world. contemporary from ancient is
To me, it's the museum's choir. I saw how we interpret and present
it and breathed in the skin of Gabon's sources. Of course, objects often
sacred harps, with their shafts carved belong to an era, but their function
into female faces. I wanted to reveal transcends their physical form and
what was hidden in this museum their practice still exists in villages.
setting that places objects behind These objects continue to narrate
glass. I recreated some of these harps myths, stories and lives, in different
in ceramic, giving them a new skin, forms and expressions. These are
including surfaces layered with oxides social, aesthetic, symbolic, political,
and soils from Gabon. therapeutic, magical and scientific
vehicles. During my research at the
Can you tell us about the museum, I could hear the whispers of
exhibition layout? the collection's objects. The museum
maintains a distance between bodies
M. M. : The exhibition conveys
and also creates a distance with the
different tones and times of mourning
object. Instead, I propose immersion.
rituals and the art of the mourners.
The idea is to infuse the space with
Annie-Flore Batchiellilys, a musician
sensuality, to reconnect with all our
and granddaughter of a Punu mourner,
senses of perception.
lends her lament to set the vibratory
rhythm. Nearby, a sculpted hand of
a mourning woman holds two sticks
to "mark the rhythm". A psychopomp
horse, one that guides the souls of the
dead, carries a piece of cloth on which
a coin is placed during the ritual to
announce the death. Pottery and salt
sculptures are the memories of all tears
shed. A woven, tactile and sound work,
created with sound designer Didier
Blanchard, runs through the entire
exhibition space. Finally, the ceramic
plates reflect on the lingui, the moment
of listening and meditation at the end
of the ritual.
MYRIAM MIHINDOU
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears
Responding to an invitation from the
musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac,
the Franco-Gabonese artist Myriam
Mihindou has created a new series of
visual and sound works in tribute to
the Punu mourners of Gabon.
As such, she explores a part of her
cultural heritage by relating the stories
and myths of an ancestral practice to
the museum's collections and sound
archives.
A "total, performative, organic
and physical" work
Myriam Mihindou's works are a
dialogue with the mourning rituals
of the Punu people. Ceramics,
basketwork, drawings, salt and
wood sculptures resonate with the
memories and invite a reflection on
how they are passed on.
A sensory experience: see, touch,
listen
A plant sculpture weaves through the
exhibition space, its sound activated
when gently touched. Through this
exhibition, Myriam Mihindou invites
us all to explore beyond the visible
and experience the works through
other senses.
Courtesy of the artist and Galerie
Maïa Muller, Paris.
Exhibition curators:
Sarah LIGNER, head of the historical
and contemporary globalisation
heritage unit at the musée du quai
Branly - Jacques Chirac
Nathalie GONTHIER, exhibition
curator
1
THE MARC LADREIT
DE LACHARRIÈRE GALLERY
Inaugurated in 2021, this venue offers, each year, in
its space dedicated to temporary exhibitions, a
unique look at the history of non-Western arts. It is
with this in mind that the « Myriam Mihindou.
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears» exhibition is supported
by the "Fonds Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière pour la
connaissance et la valorisation des civilisations
africaines et océaniennes".
WOULD YOU LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE?
/ Take a guided tour (from 12 years old)
€16 full price / €8 reduced price
/ Discover the exhibition catalogue
Édition musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
14.50 €, on sale at the bookshop
/ Consult a selection of books at the Jacques
Kerchache reading room (museum hall;
free access)
/ Conference «Does art heal?»
with the artist Myriam Mihindou and the
philosopher Fabienne Brugère (Paris-Nanterre
University), Wednesday 10 April at 6:30 pm
(théâtre Claude Lévi-Strauss, free access)
This exhibition was mounted with the generous
support of Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière.
Cover: Pierre angulaire, 2023, Myriam Mihindou © musée du
quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, photo Pauline Guyon – Galerie
Maïa Muller – protected by ADAGP.
Image 1 : Lingi, 2022, Myriam Mihindou. Courtesy of the artist
and Galerie Maïa Muller, Paris.
INFORMATION
/ www.quaibranly.fr/en
/ contact@quaibranly.fr
/ Information: 01 56 61 70 00
/ Booking: 01 56 61 71 72
OPENING TIMES
/ Tuesday to Sunday from 10.30am to 7pm,
(admission after 9.30am reserved for holders
of a museum membership card, except on
Sundays), late nights every Thursday until 10pm
/ Exceptional opening on Mondays during the
winter, spring and autumn school holidays
/ Free admission for everyone on the first
Sunday of each month
BECOME A MEMBER
Enjoy one year of unlimited access to
→ 6 FEBRUARY – 10 NOVEMBER 2024
the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.
/ Pass Solo : €38/year - €70/2 years
/ Pass Duo : €63/year - €120/2 years
GREAT DEAL
Join on the day of your visit, we deduct the
amount of your museum ticket full price, of
your subscription price. Go to the membership
area with your ticket of the day.
* Pass Solo : 24€/an – 56€/2ans
ilimb,
* Pass Duo : 49€/an – 106€/2ans
FOLLOW US
the Essence
www.quaibranly.fr/en
#MyriamMihindou
of Tears
VISIT GUIDE
* valid only on the day of your visit, with the purchase
of a Solo or Duo Pass (cannot be combined), on presentation
of a paid ticket at the membership centre from Tuesday
to Saturday from 10.30am to 5.30pm and on Sunday from
2pm to 5.30pm (closed on the first Sunday of the month).
MYRIAM MIHINDOU
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears
Responding to an invitation from the
musée du quai Branly-Jacques Chirac,
the Franco-Gabonese artist Myriam
Mihindou has created a new series of
visual and sound works in tribute to
the Punu mourners of Gabon.
As such, she explores a part of her
cultural heritage by relating the stories
and myths of an ancestral practice to
the museum's collections and sound
archives.
A "total, performative, organic
and physical" work
Myriam Mihindou's works are a
dialogue with the mourning rituals
of the Punu people. Ceramics,
basketwork, drawings, salt and
wood sculptures resonate with the
memories and invite a reflection on
how they are passed on.
A sensory experience: see, touch,
listen
A plant sculpture weaves through the
exhibition space, its sound activated
when gently touched. Through this
exhibition, Myriam Mihindou invites
us all to explore beyond the visible
and experience the works through
other senses.
Courtesy of the artist and Galerie
Maïa Muller, Paris.
Exhibition curators:
Sarah LIGNER, head of the historical
and contemporary globalisation
heritage unit at the musée du quai
Branly - Jacques Chirac
Nathalie GONTHIER, exhibition
curator
THE MARC LADREIT
DE LACHARRIÈRE GALLERY
Inaugurated in 2021, this venue offers, each year, in
its space dedicated to temporary exhibitions, a
unique look at the history of non-Western arts. It is
with this in mind that the « Myriam Mihindou.
Ilimb, the Essence of Tears» exhibition is supported
by the "Fonds Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière pour la
connaissance et la valorisation des civilisations
africaines et océaniennes".
WOULD YOU LIKE TO FIND OUT MORE?
/ Take a guided tour (from 12 years old)
€16 full price / €8 reduced price
/ Discover the exhibition catalogue
Édition musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac
14.50 €, on sale at the bookshop
/ Consult a selection of books at the Jacques
Kerchache reading room (museum hall;
free access)
/ Conference «Does art heal?»
with the artist Myriam Mihindou and the
philosopher Fabienne Brugère (Paris-Nanterre
University), Wednesday 10 April at 6:30 pm
(théâtre Claude Lévi-Strauss, free access)
This exhibition was mounted with the generous
support of Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière.
Cover: Pierre angulaire, 2023, Myriam Mihindou © musée du
quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, photo Pauline Guyon – Galerie
Maïa Muller – protected by ADAGP.
Image 1 : Lingi, 2022, Myriam Mihindou. Courtesy of the artist
and Galerie Maïa Muller, Paris.
INFORMATION
/ www.quaibranly.fr/en
/ contact@quaibranly.fr
/ Information: 01 56 61 70 00
/ Booking: 01 56 61 71 72
OPENING TIMES
/ Tuesday to Sunday from 10.30am to 7pm,
(admission after 9.30am reserved for holders
of a museum membership card, except on
Sundays), late nights every Thursday until 10pm
/ Exceptional opening on Mondays during the
winter, spring and autumn school holidays
/ Free admission for everyone on the first
Sunday of each month
BECOME A MEMBER
Enjoy one year of unlimited access to
→ 6 FEBRUARY – 10 NOVEMBER 2024
the musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.
/ Pass Solo : €38/year - €70/2 years
/ Pass Duo : €63/year - €120/2 years
GREAT DEAL
Join on the day of your visit, we deduct the
amount of your museum ticket full price, of
your subscription price. Go to the membership
area with your ticket of the day.
* Pass Solo : 24€/an – 56€/2ans
ilimb,
* Pass Duo : 49€/an – 106€/2ans
FOLLOW US
the Essence
www.quaibranly.fr/en
#MyriamMihindou
of Tears
VISIT GUIDE
* valid only on the day of your visit, with the purchase
of a Solo or Duo Pass (cannot be combined), on presentation
of a paid ticket at the membership centre from Tuesday
to Saturday from 10.30am to 5.30pm and on Sunday from
2pm to 5.30pm (closed on the first Sunday of the month).