Icons: Fantasised Images

Icons: Fantasised Images is the result of a dialogue spanning several years with the Musée de l’Image in Épinal, under the direction of Christelle Rochette, who initiated a reflection on the status of iconic images, drawing on the museum’s collections alongside contemporary works. In 2024, the exhibition held in Épinal (from 24 February to 22 September) explored myths and legends, extraordinary destinies, magnetic auras and the devotion of the masses, shedding light on the construction of images and the fantasies surrounding iconic figures. For Mougins, the selection of works has been adapted and reimagined through the lens of the photographic industry and its role in humanity’s desire to project itself into the identity of another — not just anyone, but an almost divine being, free from ambiguity or imperfection and, above all, detached from the world. The contemporary world is saturated with images. Among them, some acquire a particular power, ultimately attaining the status of icons. Derived from the Greek *eikôn* (“image”), the term originally referred to sacred representations in the Eastern Christian tradition. Over time, its meaning expanded into the secular sphere to describe figures whose image seems to transcend their very existence. This transformation depends as much on the image itself as on those who contemplate it. An icon exists only through a community of admirers, devotees or spectators who invest it with symbolic meaning, contemplate it, reproduce it and contribute to its power. It becomes the focus of a collective belief, somewhere between fascination, veneration and projection. In the biblical tradition, however, the icon is distinct from the idol. The idol seeks to confine the divine within a visible form. The icon, by contrast, derives its significance from what it reveals of the invisible, of an imagined realm beyond. It is not worshipped for its own sake, but as the sign of a presence that transcends it. With the advent of photography, followed by cinema and mass media, our relationship with images underwent a profound transformation. Mechanical reproduction multiplied the figures capable of achieving iconic status, from saints to heroes, from martyrs to symbols of rebirth. The exhibition explores this tension between image and belief, between those who are represented and those whose gaze, admiration or devotion help grant them an independent existence beyond reality. The exhibition is structured around twelve chapters, each centred on an iconic figure: Le Christ : the true icon / Le Guerrillero Heroico / Marilyn, Norma Jean, Zelda Zonk / The hand of Gof, or the life of Saint Diego / Mausoleums / The Transverberation of Padre Pio / Beatlemania / Alias Johnny / BB. The new Eve / Diana and the thirteenth pillar / 18 june, words into action / Frida Kahlo or the Mexican Dolorism This project has been awarded the Bicentenary of Photography label by the French Ministry of Culture and forms part of the official Bicentenary programme, running from 1 September 2026 to 30 September 2027.