©Galante Lancman Exhibitions in 2026: art, haute couture and memory
By 2026, Calais is further establishing itself as a leading cultural destination on the Opal Coast. Blending artistic boldness with a commitment to remembrance, a rich program invites visitors to experience wonder and reflect. Whether you're passionate about Haute Couture, a design enthusiast, or a history buff, Calais' museums welcome you for unique and immersive experiences.
Haute couture, Design, Art: a unique double exhibition
At the City of Lace and Fashion
From June 13, 2026, la City of Lace and Fashion hosts the textile section of the double exhibition dedicated to the duo Maurizio Galante & Tal LancmanA couturier and member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture since the 1990s, Galante has transformed each garment into a hybrid object, blurring the lines between clothing, sculpture, and design. Since 2003, he has collaborated with Tal Lancman on a body of work where lace interacts with ceramics, metal, and glass, all treated with the same technical precision as haute couture embroidery.
The City presents the textile pieces of the journey: dresses, accessories and creations where Calais lace is not a simple tribute to the territory but a living material, integrated into a rigorous formal approach.
The exhibition, curated by Lydia Kamitsis, explores the dialogue between sculptural clothing and design objects, without hierarchy between disciplines. Until January 3, 2027.
©Robert Tulli 
©The headliner of the exhibition Maurizio Galante & Tel Lancman At the Museum of Fine Arts
At the same time, Museum of Fine Arts The exhibition also showcases its own part: the artworks and design objects created by the duo since 2003. Furniture, photographs, ceramics, and three-dimensional pieces reveal the sculptural side of a practice that refuses to be confined to a single medium. Tal Lancman's subtle humor (he too will be named a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2025) infuses forms that seem both familiar and slightly offbeat.
Visiting both museums on the same day allows you to grasp the coherence of a universe that only fully exists if you traverse it in its entirety.
All the information about the exhibition
©Tal Lancman The Auguste Rodin Gallery
An exceptional repository in the heart of the Fine Arts
Inaugurated in May 2025, the Auguste Rodin gallery of Museum of Fine Arts It deserves special mention. It brings together 26 sculptures (21 of which are on exceptional loan from the Rodin Museum in Paris), constituting the largest repository of Rodin's works in France. Bronzes, trials and pieces from the permanent collection coexist in one of the brightest rooms of the museum.
The exhibition follows a chronological order organized into six thematic sections, enriched with sensory elements and dialogues with other late 19th-century sculptors such as Carrier-Belleuse and Dalou. The central theme remains the genesis of... Burghers of Calais How did Rodin construct this monumental group? What links did it have with the city? The Parisian depots allow us to answer these questions with rarely shown pieces, in a scenography that confronts the work with its historical context without isolating it in a setting.
Discover the Rodin Gallery
©Charles Delcourt Daily life under the Occupation
In the temporary hall of the 39-45 Memorial Museum
From April 6 to September 27, 2026, the Calais Memorial Museum (Musée Mémoire 1939-1945) presents "Daily Life Under the Occupation." The exhibition was created in collaboration with the association DKOR and BOMBING, known for its work on Christopher Nolan's films 'Dunkirk' and 'De Gaulle'. At the heart of the exhibition are civilian objects rescued from oblivion at the last minute.
A rare collection of vintage bicycles, carts, and strollers evokes the columns of families on the roads during the exodus of May 1940. These objects are not displayed as relics: they tell stories of actions, decisions made in a matter of hours, and lives reduced to what could be carried. The exhibition is complemented by prohibition posters and notices to the public from the museum's archives, documents that recreate the atmosphere of a city under control. For the inhabitants of Calais, it is also a way to reflect on the resilience of their own ancestors.
©Nohcab 
©Timothé Lovergne Calais, an open-air gallery
90 works of street art
The most extensive gallery in Calais is undoubtedly the one in the street! 90 works of street art They are listed to date in the area, from the port quays to the streets of Sangatte, Marck and Blériot-Plage. The history of street art began in 1975, when Ernest Pignon-Ernest pasted an image inspired by the Bourgeoisie in the streets of the town, and it has never really stopped since.
One of the most recent pieces, Samurai and Dragon by Flow (Florian De Elizondo), was voted the most beautiful mural in France in 2026. It is located on Rue de Valenciennes, over 12 meters high. A few streets away, other artists have taken over the facades with equally large-scale works and radically different styles. Every year, the Tourist Office teams monitor the works to be displayed as part of the Street Art festival held each summer.
Discover the complete route