Moteur Imaginaire

Since the 1960s, Renault has pioneered collaborations with artists, giving rise to a remarkable collection of works inspired by the worlds of the factory and the automobile. More than half a century later, the car remains at the heart of societal reflection, standing as an icon of industrial society. This object raises questions about mobility, technological innovation, speed, the relationship between humans and machines, as well as desire, freedom, and the depletion of resources.

"The exhibition draws its inspiration from the symbolic heritage of the historic Renault factories on Île Seguin, a site that for a long time set the pace of French industry. The selection of artists and their works explores the complex relationship between the human (humanity) and machines (the artefact) that we create, with a particular focus on the automobile.

The car is presented here as a powerful symbol of innovation, progress, and freedom, while also acting as a catalyst for technological shifts, environmental transformations, urban evolutions, and new forms of social identity.

From a conceptual standpoint, the exhibition questions the mechanisms of modernity, drawing on the factory, the engine, and the assembly line as a metaphor for the delicate balance between individual capacity and collective functioning."

— Cecilia Alemani, Curator of the exhibition