The Salon du dessin
International Symposium
Since 2006, the Salon du Dessin has been organising an International Symposium around a specific theme, whose proceedings are published.
- Palais Brongniart / Petit auditorium, 1st floor
- Free access for holders of an access ticket to the Salon du dessin
- Reservation recommended. Coming soon
Paul Cezanne (1839–1906)
Apothéose de Delacroix 1878–80
Graphite, ink, and watercolor on wove paper, 20 x 23.3 cm – The British Museum, London © The Trustees of the British Museum
“The materiality of drawing. Supports, materials, tools, uses and conservation of drawing” is the theme of the study days in 2026 and 2027
Scientific direction
- Sarah Catala, heritage curator student, Paris, Institut National du Patrimoine,
- Valentine Dubard de Gaillarbois, graphic arts curator-restorer, Paris, Musée des Arts décoratifs
- Axel Moulinier, Researcher affiliated with IRHiS (Institut de recherches historiques du Septentrion: IRHIS – UMR 8529), Lille, University of Lille.
The materiality of drawing. Supports, materials, tools, uses and conservation of drawing
For early modern theorists, all art forms are based on the principle of drawing. Drawing has established itself as the production of an initial thought that an artist “brings to light with the help of a pencil or pen”, according to the Encyclopédie.
This definition assumes the primacy of drawing over all subsequent creation and is implicitly linked to an essential material criterion: paper as a medium.
Paradoxically associated with the preservation of memory since Pliny’s account of Dibutade’s daughter (who traced her lover’s shadow on a wall to preserve his memory), drawing is a fragile medium, perishable in nature, whose creation and preservation depend on material considerations.
In Europe, since modern times, drawing has emerged as a remarkable space for experimentation, as exemplified by the aesthetics of sketching, the uses of prepared paper, the technique of counter-proofing, the use of paper architectural models, and the practices of collage and tracing.
Technical developments in the graphic arts led to the development of new media (laid paper or the invention of vellum paper, coloured or oiled paper) and technical tools (mirrors, drawing pens and pantographs).
Étienne Parrocel (1696-1776)
Loth et ses filles
Gouache, pen, black ink, on a printed page, 30.5 × 21.5 cm
Marseille, Musée des Beaux-Arts, 1993-1-38
© ville de Marseille / musée des Beaux-Arts.
At the same time, drawing has a documentary aspect in that it contributes, particularly through the practice of annotation, to analysing the production process in a workshop and to the production of knowledge in art history and science (in the broad sense, including natural and geographical sciences).
Finally, drawing is at the source of social and entrepreneurial change. Over the centuries, we have seen the emergence of various social statuses linked to drawing practices, such as the emergence of drawing professions in factories, assemblers-restorers, the recognition of collectors and amateurs, and the development of trade in materials and other media, particularly drawings and facsimiles.
The two sessions of the 19th International Drawing Conference will explore the materiality of drawing, from the development of laid paper production in Europe in the 15th century to the present day.
The presentations will address the following issues:
- supports: technological improvements, technical specificities, various uses
- materials and techniques
- artistic practices and methods of reproduction involving the very substance of drawing
- posthumous practices: dismantling, restoration, exogenous marks and inscriptions, etc. mediums.
These practices are those of the actors involved in the materiality of drawing: artists, restorers, mounters, art market players, and collectors.
Paul Cezanne (1839–1906)
Apothéose de Delacroix
1878–80
Graphite, ink, and watercolor on wove paper
20 x 23.3 cm
The British Museum, London
© The Trustees of the British Museum
By making room for materiality in the world of drawing, the aim is to move beyond the attributionist approach of connoisseurship and the logic of subordinating drawing to all other forms of production, in order to foster dialogue between a number of disciplines: art history, heritage conservation and restoration, paper craftsmanship, engineering, chemistry and science, with a view to stimulating new exchanges on the materiality of drawing.
Presentations will last 20 minutes and will focus on a specific case study based on a work of art.
The four days will be organised by theme, with two sessions in 2026 devoted to the medium and another to the materials used in the works, and in 2027, one to the artists’ gestures and another to posthumous gestures (market players and restorers).
Paul Cezanne (1839–1906)
Esquisses de personnages et versets de Baudelaire
1878–80
Graphite on wove paper
20 x 23.3 cm
The British Museum, London
© The Trustees of the British Museum
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