C215's Andorra Exhibition Celebrates French Emancipation and Secularism

French street artist Christian Guémy, known as C215, has brought his work to Andorra's Espai Caldes with an installation celebrating key figures in France's fight for emancipation, Enlightenment ideals, encyclopedism, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and secularism.

The 52-year-old artist from Bondy, near Paris, views art as a tool for social change. His exhibition features murals, portraits on mailboxes—a signature motif—and canvases. It accompanies the book *Figures de la laïcitat*, co-authored with Jean Pierre-Sakoun, designed to complement each other and reach varied audiences.

The display runs until 13 March and aims to spark reflection while promoting French cultural heritage and the personalities behind emancipation movements. Among them, Guémy highlights Samuel Paty, the teacher featured on the book's cover. Paty gained tragic fame as a victim of terrorism for simply teaching secularism in the classroom. "Professors are essential in defending secularism," Guémy said, adding that supporting and empowering them is vital amid rising radicalism, online polarization, and religious fundamentalism.

Guémy champions urban art for its direct public engagement, free from commercial pressures or intermediaries. He favors stencils, which allow quick, small-scale creations—sometimes without permission—that can be replicated. Some portraits in the show adopt a fresh style, while others appear on paper in the book. Urban spaces, he argues, function as modern agoras, accessible to all regardless of language, age, social background, or art expertise.

In an era of standardized cities driven by economics and marketing, Guémy believes street art offers a humanizing breath of fresh air, though sustaining it remains challenging.