“An endless soap opera”: in Paris, where has the statue of Voltaire, removed four years ago, gone?

Even the gullible hero of his philosophical tale “Candide or Optimism” would have ended up asking questions.

Four years after its removal from Square Honoré-Champion, in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, in the summer of 2020, where has the statue of Voltaire gone?

“It’s an endless soap opera,” concedes Karen Taïeb, assistant (PS app) to Anne Hidalgo, in charge of heritage, who ensures that she is following this inextricable file with the greatest attention.

It all started in the summer of 2020, when this work commissioned after the Second World War by the State from the sculptor Léon-Ernest Drivier had to be urgently removed.

In a very fragile state, the statue which has just been tagged once again is entrusted to the National Center for Plastic Arts (CNAP) to be “cleaned”.

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