Les enfants du monde

The Children of the World

In 2001 The Children of the World are installed  in Bercy’s garden (Paris) 21 sculptures to symbolize the entrance in the 21st century.

An other displayed at the Art Fair Abu Dabui is purchases by Aloud Dabi’s Prince in 2009.

In 2010, for the Universal Exhibition in Shanghaï, the 21 Childrens of the World are installed in a sustainable way in Pudong, beside Huangpu river.

Individual sculptures went back to the city where come from the casts they shaped them. Today, some sculptures took place in Monaco, in Cuernavaca (Mexico), in Andorra, in Sienne (Italy), in Marrakech (Marocco), in Ouagadougou
( Burkina Faso), and in Shanghaï (China).

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Children of the World at Bercy, Paris
Abou dabi art fair 2009
Children of the World displayed at Art Fair About Dabi, 2009
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Children of the World’s on Shibo Road, Shangaï
Inauguration 2001 Paris Bercy avec Pierre Cardin - Photo Enfant du Monde
Children of the World’s inauguration at Bercy with Pierre Cardin
Ingauration à Cuernavaca Mexique en présence du gouverneur et de l'ambassadeur de France au Mexique Philippe Faure, Victor Contreras
Inauguration of Felipe the Mexican at Cuernavaca (Mexico) with the governor, Victor Contreras, and the French ambassador in Mexico, Philippe Faur
inauguration à Monaco avec le Prince abert II et Michel Pastor
Inauguration of Jean-Baptiste le Mone- gasque in Monaco with Prince Albert II and Michel Pastor

The Children of the World” is one of Rachid Khimoune’s greatest pieces.
These monumental bronze sculptures of children from every continents are dressed with modern roots that are the imprints of urban grounds and manhole covers from all the capital cities where rachid khimoune « met his children ».

Early in 80′s, Rachid Khimoune thought of ” Children of the world” when watching his daughter and friend dancing hand in hands in kindergarten’s courtyard.
As he explains, “although all streets are the same, sewer plates and grids around trees are as different from one city to another as are tattoos on skin”.
“These signs even reveal a city’s identity… I would have molded the world Water – Decontamination – Gas – Electricity, in all the languages of the world”.

Looking for the original roots in people, Rachid Khimoune has travelled the world, molding with elastomer paving stones, sewer plates, broken bitumen, all of which he calls”extraterrestrials” – extracted from the ground – to then dress his characters, as a designer would.

Children have always been the first to come help me, either when I’m looking for a location or when I’m setting up the elastomer.
Without any explanation, they naturally understand that this piece will exist.

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Children of the Word, behind Simone de Beauvoir footbridge, Bercy park, Paris
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Background , Government Finance Department, Bercy park, paris

Rachid Khimoune est né en France en 1953 à Decazeville (Aveyron) de parents d’origine berbère. Diplômé de l’École supérieure des Beaux-arts de Paris en 1974, il pratique d’abord la peinture avant de se tourner vers la sculpture. Avec ses nombreuses réalisations monumentales, Rachid Khimoune qui expose depuis 1975, est représenté dans plusieurs musées, collections publiques et privées en France et à l’étranger.

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