By The French Ministry of Culture has announced a nationwide festival of photography in 2026 to mark the 200th anniversary of the world’s first permanent photograph recorded by Frenchman Nicéphore Niépce.
Niépce’s photograph, ‘View from the window at Le Gras’ dated between 1826-1827 was taken from his study window on his estate in Saint-Loup-de-Varennes in Burgundy. The heliographic image which was recorded on a bitumen-coated pewter plate over eight hours in bright sunshine, is hard to make out, but features his courtyard below.
How astonished would he be to see the high-res colour images we capture now on our phones. So perhaps it is worth remembering that it all started with him!
(Photo: Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
A major exhibition will mark the opening of the bicentenary in autumn 2026 at the Grand Palais, in partnership with the Centre Pompidou and the Grand Palais-RMN, to showcase the national photographic collections.
In addition, a historical exhibition focusing on Nicéphore Niépce will be presented at the Nicéphore Niépce Museum in Chalon-sur-Saône, in collaboration with the National Library of France. And bicentenary photographic events, exhibitions and publications will appear throughout France over 2026-2027.
The detailed programme will be released by the Ministry of Culture in the spring.
