Exhibitions - Animations

GUEST OF HONOUR
ARCHIPEL BUTOR

Manoir des livres, crédit Kaptura

Exhibition Stand C1
Michel Butor (1926 - 2016) and his Lucinges archipelago

Michel Butor and Lucinges, à l’Écart

Michel Butor chose to settle in Lucinges in 1989.

Labelled a “New Novelist” following the publication of La Modification in 1957, which earned him the Renaudot Prize, philosopher, teacher, poet... never ceased to write when he was not travelling the world. His Complete Works were published by Éditions de la Différence.

Lucinges is a small town in the Annemasse urban area in Haute-Savoie, located at an altitude of 730 meters. His house, which he named “à l'Écart” (“Apart”), brought him closer to the University of Geneva, where he taught for 17 years. After living for a time “À la frontière” (“at the border”, Gaillard) and “Aux Antipodes” (“At the antipodes”, Nice), this move allowed the writer to find the right distance, the retreat he needed. The mountains became his “Thebaid”[1]. After traveling the world, Lucinges became his place of life and creation, his home port.

The first time you enter the writer's study, you are struck by the quantity of objects and books piled up, yet captivated by the serenity that emanates from the place. His office-library, “his cave,” resembles more a medieval 's workshop scribe’s or a cabinet of curiosities than a writer's office.

A residence that became a writer's house in 2020, labelled “Maison des illustres” (House of Illustrious People)

Since 2020, the writer's house has been a place of research and creation. Following his death in 2016, Annemasse Agglomération (supported by the State and the department of Haute-Savoie) acquired the building with the aim of promoting the heritage left by Michel Butor and preserving its “genius loci.”

Part of the house is dedicated to hosting artists and authors in residence. As a place of creation, the house encourages exchanges between artists and aims to stimulate dialogue and foster shared creation.
As an introduction, a discovery trail devoted to the writer is offered to visitors. In 2025, the house received the prestigious “Maison des Illustres” label.

The Manoir des livres, a showcase for artist's books

During the writer's lifetime, plans were already underway to create the future “Manoir des livres” in Lucinges. Housed in a fortified house, the heritage library finally opened in 2020. It is entirely dedicated to the conservation, promotion, and exhibition of artist's books.

Although the writer became famous for his novels, he quickly abandoned this form of writing in favour of poetry and, in particular, artist's books, a medium that offered him an infinite source of inspiration.

The books kept in this unusual library belong to the category of “dialogue books,” books with two voices, heirs to the illustrated books of the late 19th century. Born of collaboration between a writer and a visual artist, they either adopt the traditional form of the book or deliberately subvert it. Manuscript or printed, produced with or without a publisher, always in limited editions, these objects are meant both to be leafed through and exhibited, sometimes in unexpected forms (book-objects).They draw on an incredible diversity of techniques and a wealth of materials and subjects. Between 1962 and 2016, the poet produced thousands of such works, all recorded in his Catalogue de l’Écart, in dialogue with hundreds of artists: Pierre Alechinsky, Miquel Barceló, Ania Staritsky, Serge Assier, Olivier Debré, Bernard Dufour, Jean-Luc Parant, and many others.

To create this ensemble, major works were carried out between 2018 and 2020 to transform the former fortified house into a heritage library and the writer’s residence into an artists’ residency space. Funded by the municipality of Lucinges and Annemasse Agglomération, with substantial support (French State, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region, Haute-Savoie Department, Savoie Mont-Blanc Council), the project was led by heritage architect Guy Desgrandchamps. The Designers Unit Paris studio conceived the interior scenography of the Manor and the overall graphic identity.

Set in the heart of a 3,000 m² wooded park, the Manoir des Livres offers 650 m² entirely dedicated to artist's books: 180 m² of exhibition space, plus 120 m² of reception area, 64 m² of educational workshops, 30 m² of storage space, and a consultation room for researchers. Innovative, fully modular display cases, controlled lighting and temperature, and sleek design now provide the perfect setting for artist's books. An added bonus: in each room, digital tablets allow visitors to deepen their reading of the texts and explore hidden pages when the physical display allows only partial viewing.

Presentation of the Butor Archipelago collection

Together with the Michel Butor public reading library, three sites today form the Butor Archipelago at the heart of the village of Lucinges, awarded the label “Village en poésie” (Poetry Village).

In 2025, the Manoir des livres collection comprises more than 2,000 objects, including around 1,800 dialogue books. Covering a period from 1950 to the present day, it is enriched each year through an acquisition policy supported by the Regional Fund for Library Acquisitions and by donations. The Manoir des livres hosts three temporary exhibitions per year and offers a regular programme for all audiences, highlighting the discovery of the artist’s book in its many facets. Every two years, the Artist’s Book Festival brings together 1,500 visitors in the autumn.

Le Manoir des livres
91 chemin du Château, 74380 LUCINGES
accueil@archipel-butor.fr
https://www.archipel-butor.fr
Online catalogue: https://www.bibliotheques-intermede.fr