Ben: Les mots c’est la vie in Villers-Cotterêts

Let me take you to the Cité internationale de la langue française, France's international centre for the French language in Villers-Cotterêts, where Ben moves in from 8 December 2026 to 30 May 2027. The title means words are life, Ben takes over the Cité.

Ben Vautier, known simply as Ben, is famous worldwide for his white words painted on black, which have become slogans in their own right. True to the spirit of Fluxus, the movement that from the 1960s blurred the lines between art, gesture and everyday life, he turns words into actions, images and questions. From the cour des Offices to the chapel, banners, neon signs, posters, sculptures and installations fill the building.

Curated by Eva Vautier, the exhibition has four rooms: appropriation and gesture, writing that becomes painting, truth and doubt, and finally languages, peoples and identities, with works that give voice to several so-called minority languages.

An exhibition ticket costs €5, and a combined ticket with the permanent exhibition €12. Entry is free for under-26s and other eligible visitors, as well as on Sundays 3 January, 7 February and 7 March 2027. Last entry is at 5.30 pm. Guided tours take place on Saturdays 19 December, 2 January, 30 January and 6 March at 2.30 pm.