France has appointed a new leader for one of its most visible cultural bridges with the Arab world, the Institut du Monde Arabe (IMA) in Paris, following the resignation of its long-time president Jack Lang in connection with the Epstein affair. The move comes as the institute faces financial challenges and debate over its future role.
Anne-Claire Legendre, a 46-year-old diplomat who advises President Emmanuel Macron on North Africa and the Middle East, was put forward on Tuesday by Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot to become the first woman to head the institute. She would replace Lang, 86, a former culture minister who had led the organisation for 13 years.
The institute's board of directors – made up equally of Arab ambassadors and figures chosen by the French foreign ministry – was expected to confirm the appointment.
Founded in 1980 through an agreement between France and the 22 member states of the Arab League, the IMA serves as both a museum and a cultural centre dedicated to Arab history, art and language.
"The aim was to present the Arab world to a French public that did not know it well enough," Gilles Gauthier, a former French ambassador and adviser to Lang, told RFI, adding that the IMA reflects France's long-standing cultural and diplomatic ties with the region.
"France exists in the Middle East through its culture, through its language, and so that was the basis for a policy on the Arab world."
The institute stands on the banks of the Seine in central Paris, near Notre-Dame cathedral. Its modern facade of glass and metal is covered with geometric moucharabieh patterns – delicate designs inspired by traditional Arab screens used to filter sunlight.
Gaza’s ancient past revealed as artefacts survive destruction and exile
A front-line diplomat
Legendre has worked in the diplomatic unit of the Élysée Palace as an adviser to Macron since 2023. She previously served as France’s ambassador to Kuwait and as spokesperson for the foreign ministry.
In 2016 Legendre became the first woman to serve as France’s consul in New York, a post she held for four years. Fluent in Arabic, she studied the language at Inalco, the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations, and holds degrees from Sciences Po and the Sorbonne.
An ambassador who sits on the IMA's board of directors told the French news agency AFP that Legendre was “competent, substantial and committed, with a sharp knowledge of every country in the Arab world, whether in the Maghreb or the Middle East”.
Her diplomatic work has included responding to Russian disinformation campaigns while serving as foreign ministry spokesperson. She also travelled to Algiers in March 2025 to meet Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune in an attempt to ease tensions between France and Algeria.
More than a museum
For the French state, the IMA occupies a special place among cultural institutions because its funding comes from the foreign ministry rather than the culture ministry. It hosts exhibitions, concerts, debates and educational programmes focused on the Arab world.
“It is becoming a centre for reflection, creation and intellectual relations between the Arab world and France, and even beyond, Europe,” Gauthier explained. “It is the only institution of this kind in Europe.”
The institute, he added, plays a role in long-term cultural diplomacy rather than day-to-day foreign policy. “It is not about resolving crises or daily diplomatic action. It is about participating in this strong cultural and human relationship. It is a tool for dialogue.”
Despite its ambitions, the institute faces financial challenges.
A 2024 report by the Court of Auditors, France’s public spending watchdog, found that Arab countries expected to contribute 40 percent of the operating budget had stopped paying – leaving the French state subsidy as the main source of funding.
“There was a misunderstanding at the start,” Gauthier told RFI, explaining that some Gulf countries were more familiar with a model where a single large contribution is invested and generates annual income. “But it did not work that way.”
However Arab countries still support the institute through specific projects and exhibitions. Saudi Arabia helped finance an exhibition on Al-Ula, while Kuwait funded the renovation of the institute’s library.
Under Lang, the number of exhibitions “increased considerably”, Gauthier said, adding that the institute expanded work on Arabic language learning and organised more conferences requiring simultaneous translation.
Revolution and the arts: how Picasso inspired the Arab world
'Identity of millions'
Hakim El Karoui, founder of the Action Committee for the Mediterranean think tank, wrote in a column published in the daily Le Monde that the institute should become “not just an outward-facing showcase, but the beating heart of Franco-Arab culture in France”.
The issue, he said, was no longer only France’s view of the Arab world but also the identity of millions of French people whose history and culture are linked to it.
Gauthier agreed the IMA should also engage with France’s communities with roots in the Arab world, while maintaining its original mission.
“We must make the most of the existence of these significant minorities from the Arab world in our dialogue with the Arab world,” he said, warning against shifting the focus too far inward.
“The Institut du Monde Arabe must not focus mainly on France. That is not the objective.”
This article used material from this version in French
