By Amandine Vachez Published on May 21, 2026 at 11:56
It is both an ode to the beauty of world heritage and a poignant call to preserve it, as it has become a target in areas of armed conflict. The exhibition “Heritage in Resistance, from Timbuktu to Odessa”, presented by the City of Architecture under the patronage of the French National Commission for UNESCO, and in partnership with the Grand Palais RMN, is on display in Paris (Ile-de-France) from Wednesday, May 20, 2026, until January 3, 2027.
A necessary time for reflection
This unprecedented exhibition brings together an exceptional collection of maps (designed by the cartography workshop of Sciences Po), texts, models, photographs, and videos. It shows how art and architecture can help repair the world, as highlighted by the City of Architecture.
It aims to provide “a new perspective on 21st-century conflicts” by focusing on eleven countries, including Ukraine and Palestine, showcased alongside Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Armenia, Mali, Yemen, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“Without claiming to be exhaustive, this exhibition sheds light on emblematic sites and situations of cultural heritage destruction in the 21st century. Through thematic and geographical entries, and by going back in time, it offers insights to understand the extent of what is lost, but also showcases the various forms of resistance to destruction,” the Exhibition Commissioner emphasizes.
An invitation to pause, contemplate, and reflect in a world flooded with continuous information.
Erasing, resisting, repairing
Several aspects are explored throughout the exhibition. Firstly, erasure. “At the beginning of the 1990s, media and political coverage of the first Gulf War tried to convince the Western public of a controlled and sanitized war event. However, the reality was different. Shortly after, the mass atrocities committed in former Yugoslavia and Rwanda definitively dispelled this illusion. This erasure often extends to ‘ordinary and intangible’ heritage.”
Resistance comes next. While the protection of cultural heritage was long entrusted to major international institutions (UNESCO, ALIPH, or the Aga Khan Foundation), other actors have emerged (NGOs, associations, citizen collectives, and architects). All these invested individuals carry out multiple actions to protect, inventory, document, and represent monumental or ordinary heritage. In the field, every gesture becomes a form of resistance.
Finally, the concept of repair. In the 21st century, there is not only talk of “reconstruction” but also of “post-conflict repair.” This process concerns the city, buildings, the natural environment, as well as the minds and bodies, especially those of women victims of sexual violence. Beyond the reconstruction of heritage sites, it is about “rebuilding societies.”
Alongside the exhibition, a mediation program is organized from May 28 to December 11, including a series of meetings, conferences, screenings, and master classes dedicated to the relationship between heritage, conflicts, reconstruction, and contemporary creation.
Please note: This exhibition addresses conflict zones and presents artworks that may shock sensitive individuals and children under 12 years old.
“Heritage in Resistance, from Timbuktu to Odessa”, from May 20, 2026, to January 3, 2027, under the patronage of the French National Commission for UNESCO and in partnership with the Grand Palais RMN, City of Architecture and Heritage – Trocadero Reception, 1, Place du Trocadéro and 11 November, 75116 Paris. Admission: €13/€10. More information on the official website of the City of Architecture.
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