BMW France and Réseau LUX Hit the Road for the Bicentenary of Photography. A travelling photography studio will tour France, engaging with audiences from September 2026 to September 2027.

Paris. On the occasion of the Bicentenary of Photography, BMW France is partnering with Réseau LUX, the French national network of photography festivals and fairs, to support the LUX Tour, a cultural initiative that will bring photography to communities across France from September 2026 to September 2027.
Conceived as a link between artists, local communities and audiences, this caravan, transformed into a travelling photographic studio, will make stops at more than 30 photography festivals and fairs throughout France.

At the heart of the project is « À l'origine du cœur » (At the Origin of the Heart), an artistic experience conceived by Trigone collective. Visitors are invited to step into a darkroom and trigger the creation of a photograph using their own heartbeat.
Captured and transformed into an electrical impulse, this energy gives rise to a unique image on photosensitive paper. Once developed, digitised and printed, the photograph is presented to its creator as a singular imprint of a moment in life.

When Energy Becomes Image
As the official partner of the LUX Tour, a Bicentenary of Photography project endorsed by the French Ministry of Culture, BMW France is providing the new all-electric BMW iX3, zero-emission in-use, which will accompany the caravan throughout its journey. Beyond towing the caravan, the vehicle also powers the equipment required for operating the mobile studio, enabling this unique photographic experience to reach audiences across the country.

From the pulse of a heartbeat to the electricity that powers the travelling studio, the project brings together art, technology and mobility through a shared narrative: a contemporary « fée électricité » (electricity fairy), generating images and carrying them across France's regions.

A Meeting of Two Centuries of Innovation
This initiative resonates deeply with the very history of photography. While Nicéphore Niépce is internationally recognised as the inventor of photography, he was also, together with his brother Claude, the co-inventor of one of the world's first internal combustion engines. Two centuries later, the LUX Tour symbolically extends this connection between technological innovation, creativity and mobility.

“Nicéphore Niépce did not only invent photography. Together with his brother Claude, he also helped develop one of the world's first internal combustion engines. This unexpected connection between image-making and mobility resonates strongly with our commitment alongside Réseau LUX. Through the LUX Tour, we are helping take photography closer to audiences across France while showcasing how electric mobility can support a unique artistic experience. We are proud to support a project that creates a dialogue between heritage, innovation, contemporary creation and regions.” Vincent Salimon, President of the Management Board, BMW Group France

The New BMW iX3 in Support of the LUX Tour
To enable this photographic adventure to reach audiences across France, BMW Group France is providing the Trigone collective with the new all-electric BMW iX3.
Zero-emission in-use, the BMW iX3 will tow the LUX Tour caravan throughout its journey across the country. As a true companion to the project, it will also contribute to its energy autonomy through its bidirectional Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) charging technology.
Beyond its role as a towing vehicle, the BMW iX3 will also supply power to certain pieces of equipment used in the mobile studio. This capability takes on particular significance in a project where electricity lies at the very heart of the artistic experience.
From images created through participants heartbeats to the all-electric mobility that accompanies the caravan, the BMW iX3 naturally extends the project's central theme: harnessing energy in the service of creativity, human connection and the dissemination of photography across France's regions.

BMW ART MAKERS and the LUX Tour: Two Projects Endorsed by the French Ministry of Culture
Labelled as part of the Bicentenary of Photography by the French Ministry of Culture, the LUX Tour echoes BMW ART MAKERS, BMW France’s programme supporting contemporary artistic creation. Since 2021, BMW ART MAKERS has supported an artist-curator duo with the production of an original project, presented notably at the Rencontres d’Arles and Paris Photo.
Complementary in nature, the two initiatives illustrate the different dimensions of BMW’s cultural commitment. While BMW ART MAKERS supports artistic creation and emerging talent, the LUX Tour fosters the dissemination of photography by bringing it directly to audiences through a nationwide journey across France’s regions.
True to its commitment to photographic creation for more than twenty years, BMW France continues its longstanding support for photography and those who shape it. In this spirit, the partnership with Réseau LUX is built on a foundation of shared values: innovation, cultural openness, environmental responsibility, and a commitment to broadening accessibility to contemporary creativity.

LUX Tour Schedule
Following its official launch on 3 September 2026 at the French Ministry of Culture in Paris, the LUX Tour caravan will travel across France for more than a year, making stops at festivals and fairs that are members of Réseau LUX.

2026

• 5-6 September: GLAZ Festival (Rennes)
• 12-13 September: Rencontres Image et Environnement at Zone i (Thoré-la-Rochette)
• 26-27 September: QPN – Quinzaine Photographique Nantaise (Nantes)
• 3-4 October: EOP – Espaces d’Œuvres Photographiques (Rouen)
• 10-11 October: Nicéphore+ (Clermont-Ferrand)
• 16-17 October: Les Villes Invisibles (Nîmes)
• 24-25 October: Planches Contact Festival (Deauville)
• 7-8 November: Le Mois de la Photo / Lumière d’Encre (Céret)
• 11-15 November: a ppr oc he – Les Nuits Photo – Paris Photo – Photo Days – Photo SaintGermain (Paris)

2027

• 12-13 March: Printemps Photographique de Pomerol (Pomerol)
• 27-28 March: Les Photographiques (Le Mans)
• 3-4 April: Itinéraires des Photographes Voyageurs (Bordeaux)
• 8-9 May: LUM Festival (Seix)
• 15-16 May: BPM – Biennale Photo de Mulhouse (Mulhouse)
• 22-23 May: L’Événement Photographique (Nancy)
• 29-30 May: Présence(s) Photographie (Montélimar)
• 5-6 June: Festival Photo La Gacilly (La Gacilly)
• 12-13 June: Moulin Blanchard – Hors les Murs (Perche-en-Nocé)
• 19-20 June: Les Femmes s’Exposent (Houlgate)
• 26-27 June: Mondes en commun – Albert Kahn Departmental Museum (Boulogne-Billancourt)
• 3-4 July: Mesnographies (Les Mesnuls)
• 10-11 July: OFF Arles – La Kabine (Arles)
• 24-25 July: L’Été Photographique de Lectoure (Lectoure)
• 18-19 September: Photoclimat (Paris)