Arts

Analyzing the articulations between arts and humanities and social sciences, promoting exchange and dialogue between different theories and practices of knowledge

Ongoing call

Deadline for application

6 June 2025

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The Fondation Maison des Sciences de l'Homme supports the implementation of projects dedicated to the theme of "Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences".

This call aims to provide scientific and material support to research projects that are in the early stages of development and that, through this support, will be able to gain in problematic content, methodology, and the creation of research networks.

Since its creation, the FMSH has supported the exchange and dialogue between different theories and practices of knowledge. The relationship between the arts and the humanities and social sciences has evolved considerably in recent years, and the analysis of this articulation can be very fruitful.

The new practices of artistic creation by the digital (either musical, photographic, filmographic) have indeed upset the forms of their apprehension by asking for new conceptual tools for any appropriate reflection.

The arts have moreover often had an essential role in the movements of claims and protest, and this in their capacity to affirm subjectivities whose narratives were often marginalized and excluded from the institutional knowledge, thus thwarting practically certain forms of ethnocentrism or of "methodological nationalism".

In concrete terms, the arts have also had an impact on territorial planning, on participation in civic life, on the teaching of history and the transmission of memory, as well as on the psychic life and identification processes of individuals and groups. So many fields where the support to the dialogue between artistic creativity and the reflection of human and social sciences shows all its range and its meaning.

Le programme « Arts - Mondes en action, mondes en réflexion » vise à comprendre les mutations des pratiques et des structures, des imaginaires et des représentations dans la longue durée en associant les sciences humaines et sociales aux acteurs des mondes de l’art. Les partenariats soutenus permettront d’identifier les enjeux cardinaux auxquels ont été ou sont confrontées les sociétés de toutes les époques.

Véritable vecteur de réflexion et de sensibilisation, le programme Arts entend élargir les horizons en favorisant les prises de conscience. Le développement des synergies entre acteurs scientifiques, artistiques et culturels, avec l’éventuelle implication de la société civile, permettront l’exploration de nouvelles approches et innovations transdisciplinaires pour une transmission des savoirs sensible et percutante auprès du public.

Pour concrétiser cette ambition, le programme s’articule autour de trois axes :

Soutenir le développement de la recherche : en finançant des équipes partenariales portant des projets réflexifs sur les enjeux sociétaux dans toutes leurs formes d'expression.
Construire des passerelles : en créant des opportunités de dialogue entre chercheurs en sciences humaines et sociales et acteurs des mondes artistiques (cinéma, musées, philharmonies, arts plastiques, théâtre, danse...) engagés dans la compréhension des mutations sociétales.
Diffuser les savoirs : en valorisant les travaux de recherche à travers différents canaux de diffusion (ouvrages, collections, revues, expositions, dispositifs multimédias) pour toucher un large public et alimenter le débat public.

En 2025, une attention plus particulière (mais non limitative) sera portée aux projets traitant de la question de la « restitution » des œuvres et plus généralement des biens culturels à l’échelle mondiale. Toutes les dimensions de cette « relation internationale » et toutes les significations qui peuvent lui être données peuvent être explorées. Le dialogue avec les communautés et les organisations de la société civile, les institutions patrimoniales et les pouvoirs publics est particulièrement bienvenu.

The call is open to researchers from all disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, starting at the doctoral level. Only the coordinator must be a member of a French research institution or higher education institution that will host the project during its duration. The other team members may be doctoral students, post-doctoral fellows or researchers without affiliation in France or abroad.

The evaluation and selection of the projects will be carried out by an ad hoc scientific committee and will focus on:

the originality of the problematic and the approach, paying particular attention to interdisciplinary and international projects;
their collaborative dimension and involving small teams of 3-6 people (whose coordinator is statutorily attached to a French research institution or higher education establishment and present in France and the other members may be doctoral students, post-doctoral fellows or researchers without affiliation), newly constituted and likely to form larger research networks;
the participation of young researchers;
the participation and involvement of one or more art or artistic creation centers;
Co-funding from other partner institutions will be a plus.

The financial support allocated is for a period of two years;
The amount of the project is between 5,000 and 20,000 euros per project over the two years;
The support covers the various types of expenses related to the project's activities (travel expenses, accommodation, work meetings, workshops, etc.), with the exception of personnel expenses and salaries;
An agreement will be established between the FMSH and the institution to which each project coordinator belongs.