Although it was due to take place throughout November 2016, the Parisian photography biennial, Mois de la Photo (Photo Month), has announced that it will postpone the festival until April of 2017.
According to the Art Newspaper, this schedule change has been made in an effort to avoid competition with the international photography fair Paris Photo.
After its establishment in November 1980, Mois de la Photo not only turned Paris into a hub of photographic arts, but also catalyzed the founding of Paris Photo in 1997.
Despite their comparable efforts, the festival Mois de la Photo hopes to cater its exhibitions and events to a broader public audience, distancing itself from the more industry-oriented program of the fair Paris Photo.
The decision to shift its program from November to April coincides with the recent rebranding of Mois de la Photo under François Hébel, the artistic director for the 2017 event.
Formerly the director of Les Rencontres d’Arles, and founder of the Foto/Industria Biennale in Bologna, Hébel will spearhead the Mois de la Photo in undertaking the theme “Greater Paris.”
Anticipating that April will provide visitors with more mobility than November, Mois de la Photo is poised to show photographic works in spaces both within and throughout the city’s periphery, exposing visitors to new places throughout their viewing experience.
This geographic dispersion will also grant access to a broader audience of viewers, expanding the festival’s cultural reach while fostering relations between Parisian neighborhoods.