The Institut Français du Royaume-Uni: Britain's Official Portal into French Culture!
With French historian Charlotte Faucher as her guide, Muriel explores the madly ornamental pink-brick Art Deco wonder that is the French Cultural Institute in South Kensington. Though the building dates from 1939, the idea of setting up a French Institute in Britain as a gateway to a better understanding between our two nations arose in 1910, the brainchild of Marie d'Orliac, an enigmatic figure who was also very good at reinventing herself. Nowadays South Kensington is a hub of French soft power, but how did it all begin, and what was the impact of the two World Wars on the project…
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