In collaboration with the Fondation Antoine de Saint Exupéry pour la Jeunesse, the Château l’Hospitalet in Narbonne, owned by Gérard Bertrand, will be hosting “The Little Prince and the Aviator” from June 3 to September 25, 2023, an exceptional exhibition in honor of the Little Prince’s 80th birthday.
Visitors can discover the poetic and philosophical universe of Antoine de Saint Exupéry through a selection of rare objects and documents: drawings from The Little Prince, unpublished manuscripts and a series of his personal objects from the Foundation’s collections. A poignant and remarkable immersion into the extraordinary destiny of the author, “a man of poetry and action, (…) both entirely a writer and entirely a pilot”, as Joseph Kessel, one of his faithful friends, said of him.
The exhibition will also bring together three major contemporary artists, each of whom has contributed his or her own vision of the Little Prince’s universe:
Cyril Phan alias Kongo will be exhibiting his recent paintings in vibrant colors, as well as an unheard-of piece: a Nord 1000! Dating from 1934, this aircraft competed with the Caudron Simoun planes with which Antoine de Saint Exupéry took part in the great Paris-Saïgon (1935) and New York-Terre de Feu (1938) air raids. Kongo’s Nord 1000 pays homage to the author’s entire literary oeuvre, with the titles of his novels inscribed by the artist on the aircraft’s fuselage, as an invitation to immerse oneself in his humanist, philosophical and visionary thought.
Cédric Fernandez, author of a splendid Antoine de Saint Exupéry trilogy published by Editions Glénat, will be exhibiting a selection of large-format prints of his finest drawings.
Jean-Marc de Pas will unveil a series of bronze sculptures inspired by the original watercolors of Saint Exupéry’s asteroids that illustrate The Little Prince.
Going beyond the Espace d’Art du Château l’Hospitalet, the exhibition also takes in the Château’s interiors and exteriors, and even extends into the night with projections on the buildings’ facades. An exquisite moment to discover at nightfall, with your head in the stars!
This unique exhibition is a rare opportunity to discover or rediscover the enchanting world of The Little Prince, a masterpiece translated into over 500 languages and a timeless global literary success.
The Little Prince and the Aviator, from June 3 to September 25, 2023 – Château l’Hospitalet – Narbonne.
Free exhibition, daily from 9am to 8pm. Evening screenings from 10pm.
