François-Xavier Gbré

CATLOGUE OF THE EXHIBITION LOVA [HERITAGE]

FRANÇOIS-XAVIER GBRÉ

On April 12 2025, Fondation H releases Lova [Heritage], a limited-edition photography book signed by François-Xavier Gbré, Franco-lvorian artist, born in 1978 in Lille, France. This publication marks the culmination of an artistic and documentary project developed in collaboration with the artist and Fondation H since 2022. It began with François-Xavier Gbré's first residency in Antananarivo, continued through his Lova [Heritage] exhibition in April 2023 in Madagascar's capital, and now takes the form of this unique book-object, published in April 2025.

In this volume, published by Fondation H, François-Xavier Gbré presents an intimate visual exploration of Antananarivo through 100 photographs taken in 2022 and 2024.His images capture the city’s architecture, its visible colonial legacy, and the contemporary transformations shaping its urban landscape. Layering historical and societal narratives, Gbré's work reveals the multiple dimensions of this city of twelve hills, where past and present intersect. The book also features several texts: a conversation between Francois-Xavier Gbré and Margaux Huille (Director of Fondation H), an essay by Alicia Knock (Curator of Contemporary and Prospective Creation at the Centre Pompidou, Paris, who contributed to the artist's 2023 exhibition in Antananarivo), and a chronicle by VANF(Columnist and editorialist in Antananarivo, Madagascar).

The book is bilingual, in Malagasy and French. As a limited-edition release, each copy is signed by the artist and includes an original print of one of the photographs featured in the book. The book is presented in a handmade kraft cardboard box.It was designed, printed, and fully crafted in Antananarivo, on the presses of GraphExpress, using vegetable-based inks. The book is available for purchase at the price of €100 / 400,000 Ariary at the Fondation H's shop in Antananarivo, at several partner bookstores (Samouraï - Lecture & Loisirs; Il était une fois; and Mille Feuilles), and online.

View an excerpt from the catalogue