Paris. It’s not easy to find a replacement for Martine Lusardy, who has managed the Halle Saint-Pierre for more than thirty years and is preparing to (semi-)retire. Especially when the City of Paris seems to be trying to impose its candidate. However, the board of directors, chaired for around ten years by Jean Lebrun, a radio figure (former host and producer of “La marche de l’Histoire” on France Inter), had done things correctly: official announcement of recruitment in June 2025, call for applications, constitution of a selection committee, definition of criteria, etc.
Art historian and exhibition curator Emmanuel Daydé tops the list. The selection committee was won over by his experience as an organizer of Nuit blanche and his various exhibition curators. But is it his age (65) or the fact that he worked in the cultural affairs department of the City of Paris under the old majority? Still, Carine Rolland, the deputy mayor in charge of culture, and the former minister Aurélie Filippetti who became director of cultural affairs in Paris have expressed their disapproval. They secretly pass around a list of candidates with “the right profile” while calling into question the regularity of the procedure.
The City has no shortage of “arguments” to convince the management of the Hall. It owns the building (a Baltard-style metal hall built in 1868 at the foot of the Montmartre hill and converted into a cultural venue in 1986), however the standoff occurred after the renewal in July 2025 of the occupancy agreement for a period of five years. Furthermore, it subsidizes the association, but, as important as it is, the municipal subsidy, of 350,000 euros, only constitutes 20% of its revenue. Thanks to its reference bookstore, its cafeteria and its exhibitions which attract a large paying public, the Halle Saint-Pierre is doing quite well economically and can count on its 16 very supportive and versatile employees. The place is also a cultural locomotive in this part of Montmartre.
Aurélie Filippetti sent Jean Lebrun a registered letter on January 12 in which she noted the relaunch of the recruitment procedure and imposed new regulations for this procedure which gave more weight to the City. As a cunning diplomat, Jean Lebrun plays for time. He obtained by a unanimous vote of the board of directors (CA) – including the elected representatives of the City –, meeting on January 30, that it constituted itself as a selection committee as a whole. The six candidates preselected in the initial call for applications, including Emmanuel Daydé, are still in the race. But with the municipal elections next March and the probable change of elected officials sitting on the board, this postpones the choice of director until the summer. This is not to displease Martine Lusardy.
The current exhibition at the Hall, entitled “The Fabric of Dreams” (until July 31), presents textile creations produced by artists from outsider art and surrealism.
