TROPHIEE DES ARTS 2012 IN NEW YORK CITY

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NEW YORK SOCIETY

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Singer Angelique Kidjo

Lauren Santo Domingo

Charlie Rose And Francoise Gilot

Angelique Kidjo With Marie Moniqu Steckel And Vanessa Redgrave

Grammy Award winner and activist Angelique Kidjo received the 2012 -and 20th- Trophée des Arts in New York on Friday, November 30th, 2012. 

During the gala evening, the former French minister for Economy and Finance, and current Chairman and CEO of IT giant Atos, Thierry Breton, was honored with the 2012 Pilier d’Or. 

More than 400 guests attended the gala evening, which raised about $900,000 to support the French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF) cultural and educational programs. The gala was dedicated to the late Lorenzo Weisman who passed away last September and was a former Chairman of FIAF.

The author of The Bonfire of the Vanities Tom Wolfe, Picasso’s muse Françoise Gilot, Henri Matisse’s great granddaughter, art dealer Eric Mourlot, H.E. the Ambassador of France to the United States François Delattre, co-chairs of the Gala Behdah Alizadeh and Robert G. Wilmers, Princess Khaliya Aga Khan, Kate Bouquard & Christian Moretti, James Brook, Jr., Hélène Comfort, Emmanuel di Donna, Dovile Drizyte, Martha Flores & Jérôme Lhote, Sarah Hoover, Sasha Leviant, William & Clémence von Mueffling, John de Neufville, Marie-Noëlle Pierce, Lola Rikyel, Andres and Laurene Santo Domingo, and Amelia & Mortimer Singer were among the guest of this annual Franco-American evening.

CBS Morning Show anchor Charlie Rose presented the Pilier d’Or to Thierry Breton. “Thierry Breton believes in my country; he believes in his country,” Rose said. 

Breton, who has spent his life between New York and Paris, remembered that when he was in charge of Economy and Finance for the French Government from 2005 to 2007, he had on the wall of his office a map of the United States with Louisiana spanning from the Gulf of Mexico all the way to Canada. “Louisiana was sold for 15 million dollars in 1803 by Napoleon,” Breton reminded the guests. “But our friends, our cousins, never paid,” he added. “We have a lot of lawyers here tonight. I am giving you a good case,” he concluded laughing before talking in depth about the common history the United States and France share.

“It was more than just the celebration of the Franco-American friendship,” the President of FIAF Marie-Monique Steckel said. “It was the celebration of two friends: Charlie Rose and Thierry Breton.”

The soirée concluded when Academy award winner and UNICEF goodwill Ambassador Vanessa Redgrave came on stage to present Angelique Kidjo with the Trophée des Arts. “Singing is liberating,” Redgrave said before congratulating the Benin-born star in perfect French. "With Vanessa Redgrave and Angelique Kidjo, we not only celebrated two powerful women but also the relationship between New York and the French speaking world,” Steckel explained. 

Instead of a long speech, Kidjo performed a series of songs including “Petite Fleur,” a Sydney Bechet and Henri Salvador song, which she dedicated to her late father and all women who are still suffering from violent acts. Last week, Kidjo and other activists won a long battle to have the UN pass a resolution against excision. Singing in French and in African dialecte, Kidjo said: “if we make the effort of speaking each other’s language we will live in peace.”

“The force, the spirit, the songs and the joy of Angelique Kidjo reminded all of us how necessary it is to know one another's cultures and languages to build a better world. And that is exactly why FIAF organizes the annual World Nomads festival, which will celebrate Tunisia next spring," Steckel concluded.

Time Magazine called Mrs. Kidjo “Africa's premier diva,” and she has also distinguished herself as an advocate for children welfare, through her own philanthropy, the Batonga Foundation.

Kidjo’s next concert in New York will be held at The Standard in the East Village on December 10th and will benefit her foundation Batonga, which builds schools for young girls in Western Africa.

ABOUT FIAF

Founded in 1898, the French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF) is the leading French language and cultural center in the United States. Its mission is to create and offer New Yorkers innovative and unique programs in education and the arts that explore the evolving diversity and richness of French cultures. FIAF seeks to generate new ideas and promote cross-cultural dialogue through partnerships and new platforms of expression. 

FIAF presents a wide range of sophisticated programming in both French and English throughout the year, offering films, lectures, art exhibitions, and live performances of music, theater, dance, and more in the FIAF Gallery, Florence Gould Hall, Le Skyroom, and Tinker Auditorium. 

Each fall, the interdisciplinary contemporary arts festival Crossing the Line presents boundary-breaking works by artists who are transforming cultural practices on both sides of the Atlantic. The spring brings World Nomads, a biennial festival dedicated to exploring the exchange of ideas, artistic expression, and style throughout the Francophone world.

FIAF’s historic building, renovated and decorated by the well known theater set designer Richard Peduzzi, is a fully active educational and cultural New York institution. The Haskell Library houses the most comprehensive collection of French works in the United States. The Language Center, with 6,000 students each year, is also the largest in the country and offers instruction in French at all levels to people of all ages.

Photos Courtesy Of: FIAF