Message from the President
Dear ISFAR members,
We hope you enjoy reading this winter edition of the newsletter. As you will see, the Editors and the Research Committee have been working hard on the next issue of The French Australian Review and organising two ISFAR symposiums (more information to come) respectively. ISFAR members Daniel Binns and James Hewison report on their ISFAR-sponsored research projects, followed by the usual selection of exhibitions and other French related activities, including the forthcoming play by The Melbourne French Theatre, Il était un petit navire – (“SOS Save Our Savings”), and of course the Bastille Day French Festival in Melbourne.
On the political side of French-Australian relations, French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade Nicolas Forissier visited Australia in April to champion the landmark EU-Australia trade deal. During his nationwide tour, he met with state leaders, parliamentary officials, and French diplomats, including the Consul General of France in Melbourne, Madame Paule Ignatio, to boost economic and strategic ties. In early June, Senator Penny Wong, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Australia, visited France’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, to discuss the Australia-France Roadmap. The upgraded Roadmap will create a new framework for strategic engagement including cooperation across defence, security, policing, hybrid threats, economic and climate resilience, as well as education, science and culture (the joint statement can be found here). We also farewell His Excellency Mr Pierre-André Imbert, Ambassador of France to Australia, and wish him every success as he takes on his new role as Secretary General of the French Presidency.
In other news, ISFAR is looking for a new Treasurer (more details below). Please contact us at isfarinc@gmail.com if you would like to know more and/or to be considered for the role. We look forward to welcoming you to our team!
The French Australian Review
In the last newsletter we advised of the changes to the Editorial team for the Review and are pleased to advise that the new team is now well in place – John West-Sooby, Editor, and Jean Fornasiero, Pauline Georgelin and Jane Gilmour, Associate Editors.
John West-Sooby should indeed be well-known to members of ISFAR and readers of the newsletter. He is Emeritus Professor of French Studies at Adelaide University. He has published widely on different aspects of French scientific voyaging in the Pacific, was a member of the Baudin Legacy Project and led another ARC-funded project, ‘Revolutionary Voyaging’, which examined the interactions between the State-sponsored scientific voyages during the period of the French Revolution and the changing political and scientific scene in France at the time. He has a long-standing interest in Stendhal and the nineteenth century French novel, as well as in crime fiction and translation studies.
Jean Fornasiero is Professor Emerita at Adelaide University. Her research interests lie principally in nineteenth-century French literature and history, particularly the Napoleonic and Romantic periods. A member of the Baudin Legacy Project Team, she has also published extensively on French scientific voyaging in the nineteenth century and was a Chief Investigator on the ‘Revolutionary Voyaging’ research project. She maintains an ongoing interest in political commitment in nineteenth and twentieth century French fiction.
Pauline Georgelin has completed her PhD at the University of Melbourne on French-born soldiers in the AIF in the First World War. She continues her research interest in French-Australian shared histories. She is the Secretary of ISFAR.
Jane Gilmour has a doctorate from the University of Paris-Sorbonne, was the Director of the Secretariat at the Australia(n) Council for the Arts, the CEO of Earthwatch Institute and worked as a consultant in arts and cultural policy for many years, including at the Commission for the Future. She is the author of Colette’s France: Her Lives, Her Loves. She has been co-editor of The French Australian Review for a number of years and maintains an ongoing interest in French-Australian cultural relations.
This new editorial team has got its feet under the desk with speed. The Submissions Guidelines have been reviewed and simplified. They are available on our ISFAR website here. We have also agreed that, together with the ‘themed’ symposia issues every second year, there will be, in the intervening years, a themed issue for which a call for papers will be issued. The first such themed issue will focus on New Caledonia, specifically the changing political context.
Needless to say, the editing process continues and issue 80, which will be published in July–August, will include three articles. Other content will include a research note by Edward Duyker on Lapérouse in fiction, two eulogies (Kenneth Dutton and Peter Hambly), an interview with Australian artist Mel O’Callaghan who was awarded one of the first Resonance Grants by the French-Australian Cultural Exchange Foundation, for a project at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris, a note on the 2024 Ivan Barko Award, as well as book reviews and bibliographical notes.
News from the Research Committee – dates for your diary
Half-day Symposium, Wednesday 30 September 2026, 9.45am–1pm
Visions croisées: French Australian Artistic Encounters
Organised by ISFAR and the Department of French and Francophone Studies at the University of Sydney. To be held at The University of Sydney in person, and online.
Outstanding postgraduate and early career researchers will explore the visions croisées of French and Australian artists as they confront some of the major challenges of the world today: climate change, the Anthropocene, overconsumption and waste, posthumanism…
Several of the presenters are winners and finalists in the 2025 Eloquence Art Competition, organised since 2021 by Culture Plus, that awards the highly sought-after major prize of a study trip to France for the best comparison of the works of a French and an Australian artist, addressing the same theme. An additional prize, that offers mentoring towards the presentation and publication of their research, is awarded by ISFAR. Details of registration etc will be sent out in mid-June.
2027 ISFAR Symposium, Friday 2 and Saturday 3 April 2027
Titled Ways of Seeing the Other. Representations of France and Australia
Façons de voir l’Autre. Représentations de la France et de l’Australie
To be held at RMIT, Melbourne, in person and online.
The title of the Symposium echoes a foundational work of art criticism, Ways of Seeing (1972), written by the multi-talented critic, artist and intellectuel engagé John Berger (1926–2017). ‘Every image’, wrote Berger ’embodies a way of seeing’ – a ‘way of seeing’ that is an act, a choice of interpretation, of what to focus on, of what to ‘see’. The 2027 Symposium invites papers that reflect on the significance of the choices made by Australian and French ‘cultural creators’ – including artists, filmmakers, photographers, playwrights, directors and curators amongst others – in engaging with the other country and the impact of those choices on representations and expectations. An initial Call for Papers will be sent out in July.
French Australian Dictionary of Biography
The Research Committee’s long-term research project, the French Australian Dictionary of Biography, continues to add entries for people who have been significant in some way in shaping the relations between our two countries. The Dictionary now contains over fifty entries, the latest highlighting the role of Anne Dangar in developments in the field of French and Australian art, written by Jane Gilmour.
Members are encouraged to visit the site and to suggest additional names to be added to the list of potential entries. Offers to write entries are always welcome.
Contact elizabeth.rechniewski@sydney.edu.au
News from our members
HOW FRANCE PROJECTS ITSELF ONTO AUSTRALIA THROUGH FILM, a research project by James Hewison (supported by ISFAR)
France and Australia have had a deep cinematic relationship for over a century. The Lumière Brothers sent one of their representatives to present their revolutionary ‘Cinématographe’ in 1896 and filmed in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. The first co-production treaty Australia signed was with France in 1986 and has yielded some fascinating collaborations between the French and Australian film industries over the years. Significantly – and remarkably – the annual Alliance Française French Film Festival (AFFFF) is the largest French cinema event outside of France and has just delivered record attendances! What is it about French cinema therefore that continues to fascinate and draw Australian audiences?
James’s research will be quantitative; analysing for example the commercial impact of French cinema on Australian cinema-going audiences, and qualitative; interviewing key film industry figures, about how they frame and market French cinema for Australian audiences. Can this research project define how the French industry regards itself as ‘le septième art’ as a ‘defender’ of film culture (especially its own of course), and what lessons can be learned for the future of the Australian film industry?
How does a national identity manifest, how is it defined in its cinema, and how is that cinema so enthusiastically received by another culture? Is it in part a response to the hegemony of America, the clarion call of a cinema that is defiant in its spirited defence of its film culture? Or is it a ‘brand’ that sells a perceived sophistication that we lack and aspire to in Australia? Given that the AFFFF is essentially produced by French agencies, the French Embassy (and the French cinema promotional agency Unifrance) through the Alliance Française and at Palace Cinemas, is the event essentially soft – or cultural – diplomacy to better international understanding?
What are the dominant representations of France from the Antipodes? What is so alluring about these representations of cultural identity and more particularly, are they diverse and complex or thin stereotypes, even hegemonic? Is Australia’s desire for French cinema a way of belonging to a constructed fantasy, perhaps seeking to acquire a certain ‘Frenchness’ aspirationally?
And who is doing the constructing?
This project has been percolating for a long time, in fact sparked by an invitation to participate in ISFAR’s Melbourne Salon last year. It serves at once as a personal exploration of James’s dual citizenship status, to seek to better understand the cultures of his ‘Australianness’ and his ‘Frenchness’, and how it intersects with his cinephilia.
Note: James will be in conversation with eminent film critic – and francophile – Philippa Hawker exploring and interrogating this allure of French cinema as part of the Bastille Day Melbourne festivities on Saturday 11 July 2–3pm at the Veriu Hotel Queen Victoria Market.
From 5–30 April 2026, Dr Daniel Binns (RMIT University) undertook a research visit, supported by ISFAR’s Research Committee, to Paris and Nice as Chercheur Invité at Laboratoire Paragraphe, Université Paris 8-Vincennes Saint-Denis.
The visit included invited presentations at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, the Séminaire HERMES at Campus Condorcet, and the Créativités Artificielles symposium at Université Côte d’Azur.
A Convention d’Accueil with Paris 8 was formalised, and MOU processes initiated with Paris 1 and Paris 8. New collaborations are underway with Sciences Po médialab and CNRS, and a co-authored article with Associate Professor Everardo Reyes (Laboratoire Paragraphe) is in preparation for The French Australian Review.
Daniel will be presenting part of his research project in the forthcoming online seminar on 22 June.
Melbourne French Theatre announces upcoming production
The Melbourne French Theatre has announced its upcoming production, Il était un petit navire – also presented in English as SOS Save Our Savings – by Jean-Pierre Martinez. The play will be directed by Paul Wanis and produced by Michel Bula.
Stranded by a ferry strike, six desperate strangers risk everything on a dubious boat ride to freedom – only to find themselves lost at sea, out of fuel, and sinking fast. As secrets spill and tensions explode, this razor-sharp comedy exposes greed, power, and moral compromise with biting wit. SOS Save Our Savings is a darkly hilarious, fast-paced satire where survival comes at a price – and no one is as innocent as they seem.
With its intriguing premise and ensemble of secretive characters, the production promises an engaging theatrical experience for audiences this August.
The show will run from Tue 4 Aug to Sat 15 Aug 2026. Tickets range from $22 to $43, including the booking fee, plus wine and cheese before the show, featuring Dominique Portet wines and Will Studd cheeses. For more information: contact Lucie Sors, Promotions Manager productions@mftinc.org
Call for new Treasurer
ISFAR is looking for someone to succeed our longstanding and loyal Treasurer, Richard Miller.
This pro bono role will suit someone with some bookkeeping abilities, some general business and financial experience. An accounting qualification would be an advantage, but is not essential. The role can begin at the successful applicant’s convenience. A more detailed outline of the role is available from isfarinc@gmail.com.
Request for donations to Melbourne French Theatre’s 50th anniversary book project
In the March newsletter we reported on plans for a book to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Melbourne French Theatre, which takes place in 2027. The writing process is well underway, with several writers already commissioned to write chapters, but we welcome interest from anyone else keen to be involved in the writing process. Expressions of interest with CV should be sent to Michel Bula at the following email productions@mftinc.org.
Melbourne French Theatre has also launched a GoFundMe campaign for the book, which is generously supported by the John & Myriam Wylie Foundation on a dollar-for-dollar basis. We would welcome donations to the campaign for those who would like to contribute. Funds will support the book’s production, including payments to writers.
Recent and upcoming events
F.A.R in the Southern Connections: Antarctica and Pacific, navigating from heritage to climate resilience
This event, co-organised by the Embassy of France in Australia and AFRAN Inc. took place from 4–6 March 2026 in Hobart and brought together more than 150 participants, coinciding with the stopover of two French military vessels, the icebreaker L’Astrolabe and the New Caledonian patrol vessel Auguste Bénébig; a fine illustration of the meeting between the Pacific and the Antarctic. A detailed summary document reporting on the discussions and outcomes of the event is available here.
George Rudé Seminar in French History and Culture
The 25th George Rudé Seminar in French History and Culture will take place from 8-10 July 2026 at the University of Western Australia in Perth. The conference, held every two years, brings together scholars from throughout Australasia with colleagues from Europe, North America and elsewhere. A selection of peer-reviewed articles developed from papers presented will be published online on H-France, edited by Briony Neilson.
The keynote addresses will be given by Jennifer Yee, Professor of Literature in French at the University of Oxford, speaking on ‘Oxford Romanticism and the Oriental Despot: from Delacroix to Balzac and Baudelaire’, and by Tracy Ryan, an award-winning poet, novelist and academic on ‘Playing with the Facts: Writing French Women’s History into Fiction’.
The conference will be available by live-streaming as well as in person.
Bastille Day French Festival in Melbourne
In this family friendly event you will “voyage” to the heart of France. The Bastille Day French Festival will be packed with local French-Australian businesses, mouth-watering French cuisine, dazzling artists and performers, a cultural program filled with Les Lumières talks, Walking Tours and masterclasses, right in the heart of the city!
9 am – 4 pm Sat 11 – Sun 12 July, Queen Victoria Market, Sheds C and D.
Exhibitions
Following its debut season at the WA Maritime Museum in Fremantle (2024–2025), the immersive exhibition ‘Empress Joséphine’s Garden’ is now being shown in Adelaide, at Immersive Light and Art (Light Square). ISFAR members Jean Fornasiero and John West-Sooby contributed to the exhibition as historical consultants.
In 2026 the Art Gallery of South Australia is presenting ‘Monet to Matisse: Defying Tradition’, bringing 57 master works from the world-renowned collection of the Toledo Museum of Art, some of which have never been seen before in Australia. Select works from AGSA’s own collection enrich and complement the exhibition experience. The exhibition commences on 11 July 2026 and continues until November. A recent ABC news item provides further information about this exhibition. Information about school bookings is available on the AGSA website.
Until 9 August 2026, Heide Museum of Modern Art is presenting Always Modern: Radical Nurture which looks at the pioneering artists who shaped Australian modernism, known as the Heide Circle. The exhibition features more than 60 works from the Heide collection and the estate of French-Australian artist Mirka Mora, who died in 2018, aged 90. It also brings together works by Charles Blackman, Joy Hester, Sidney Nolan, Albert Tucker, Sam Atyeo and Danila Vassilieff.
Geelong Gallery: Discovering the Impressionists: Paul Durand-Ruel, Sat 20 Jun to Sun 11 Oct.
Contact us at ISFAR
ISFAR: isfarinc@gmail.com
The French Australian Review: french.australian.review@gmail.com
ISFAR Research Committee chair: elizabeth.rechniewski@sydney.edu.au
Join ISFAR or renew your ISFAR membership. Membership includes subscription to The French Australian Review journal.
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Useful links
Alliance Française de Melbourne www.afmelbourne.com.au
Association of French Teachers in Victoria (AFTV) www.aftv.vic.edu.au
Australian-French Association for Research and Innovation (AFRAN) www.afran.org.au
Australian Historical Association www.theaha.org.au
Bastille Day French Festival Melbourne www.bastilledaymelbourne.com
Bleu Blanc Rouge (Consular newsletter) www.bbrvic.com/en
French Assist Melbourne www.frenchassistmelbourne.org.au
French Australian Chamber of Commerce www.facci.com.au
ISFAR resources
ISFAR provides resources to researchers in the field of French-Australian studies, with the support of the authors or contributors who give their approval to publish this material. Access all ISFAR resources www.isfar.org.au/resources.