Crossed perspectives on William the Conqueror

Itinerant multimedia exhibition "Crossed Views on William the Conqueror: Illuminations by Anastasia Lobanova & photographs by Fedor Bakulin"

“A sensory journey between contemporary Normandy and medieval heritage”
What if the Bayeux Tapestry had taken the form of an illuminated manuscript from the 11th century? The exhibition explores this hypothesis by combining illuminations, contemporary photography, and immersive sound creation to offer an immersion into the world of William the Conqueror, a thousand years after his time.

The series “If the Bayeux Tapestry Were a Manuscript…” comes from the vision of Anastasia Lobanova. After more than fifteen years dedicated to the conception and production of cultural projects and documentary films internationally, she settled in Normandy in 2022 in search of a new artistic language that combines historical research and the techniques of medieval illumination, learned notably from Astrid Bertrand. Created using ancient methods — parchment, pigments, tempera, gold leaf — her works transpose the scenes of the Tapestry into imaginary pages, accompanied by texts calligraphed in Caroline minuscule. The whole constitutes an interpretation faithful to the spirit of the artwork, without being a reproduction.

In dialogue, Fedor Bakulin, director of photography and photographer, whose documentary films have been broadcast by ARTE and YLE and integrated into the collections of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF) and Harvard University, presents the photographic series “Normandy. In the Footsteps of William the Conqueror.” His work explores places marked by Norman history — buildings, landscapes, heritage sites — in an approach blending documentary and poetic evocation.

The exhibition is enriched by an original sound creation and highlights the rare art professions related to the book today. Demonstrations of illumination accompany the exhibition, showcasing ancient know-how in a contemporary context.

Designed as an itinerant device, the exhibition will extend its journey across Europe after several presentations in Normandy and is supported by specialists in heritage and the museum world.

“These are two projects that combine scientific rigor and creative originality.”
Honorary Director of the University Office for Norman Studies
University of Caen Normandy
“This meeting demonstrated all its technicality and the quality of its art.
Its approach is an original valorization of the embroidery that inspired it. That is why we proposed to Ms. Lobanova to integrate her work within the permanent collection of the future Bayeux Tapestry Museum, which will open by 2027. Her works will thus find a place at the heart of the institution's journey.
Ms. Lobanova's work deserves to be discovered by the general public.”
Clémentine Paquier-Berthelot, Head of Documentary Program - Bayeux Tapestry Museum
“...a contemporary vision of the book arts inherited from the medieval era and will highlight the beauty and fragility of the transmission of traditional know-how.”
Chief Heritage Curator
Director of the Museum of Fine Arts and Lace

Practical Information:
All audiences
Free

Contact