European inventory of
societal values of culture

Bonnet – The MAC VAL: A museum of contemporary art in the suburbs

Bonnet, P. (2023). The MAC VAL: A museum of contemporary art in the suburbs

The MAC VAL, a museum of contemporary art located in the suburbs of Paris, is a bold project of cultural decentralisation and dissemination of contemporary art to a wide audience. A political as well as an artistic project, the circumstances of its birth have left a lasting mark on its existence. How can these two wills be articulated and find their right balance? After examining this history and its particularities, the study focuses on the analysis of the project itself, in the shadow of Paris and its prestigious sites. We will then question the identity that the museum wishes to claim and the nature of the targeted public: those who are potentially tempted and those who will have to be attracted by a more precise policy. This will be the object of the study of the mediation setup to respond to this last challenge. The political, economic, social, and cultural stakes of the project pose different problems that this museum must face. Does the museum live up to its ambitions?