Refugee Lab 2026 : the R-Lab is back to the House of Refugees – Paris

R-Lab – Art & Inclusion

R-Lab is a European‑scale artistic laboratory that explores the role of art in inclusion and offers a framework to question, experiment with, and collectively develop our professional practices.
Can art truly overcome language barriers? How can we adequately protect participants? What should we do when an activity brings deep suffering to the surface? Are we valuing participants’ cultures or turning them into folklore? Who decides on the content, the format, and the final outcome?

These are the questions that will guide this second edition of R-Lab, conceived as a journey of collective research and hands-on experimentation.

R-Lab unfolds in two phases:
Three professional days for artists, educators, social workers, cultural practitioners, volunteers, and partners of the Maison des Réfugiés, dedicated to experimenting with artistic methodologies and sharing practices. Each day is self-contained and focuses on a specific theme:

• Wednesday 11 February: movement
• Thursday 12 February: photography and video as vectors
• Friday 13 February: expression – self-narrative

These days combine experiential formats, masterclasses, and discussion spaces, in order to bring out shared methodologies.
Saturday 14 February: a day open to the wider public, conceived as a time for artistic restoration, sharing, and celebration.

R-Lab’s objectives

• Facilitate access for newly arrived people to non‑formal education through artistic practices, in connection with local communities.
• Encourage dialogue between art, social work, and education, and support skills development for artistic and social practitioners.
• Create a space for exchange between European stakeholders around artistic methods in intercultural contexts.

R-Lab is an invitation to think, experiment, and create together, placing art at the heart of inclusion and intercultural encounter.

Programme of contributors

Wednesday 11 February: Focus on Movement

Masterclass by Yadullah Mousawi
Intercultural encounter through art

Getting to know one another and creating an initial connection through art. Introductory exercises, movement-based activities, and collective games. Together, participants will create a collective artwork to experiment with intercultural communication, collaboration, and shared expression. Discussions on framework, safety, and respect for cultural and linguistic differences.

Yadu Yoga

Workshop by Taigué Ahmed
Dance for Refugees

Dance as a tool for transmission and expression around the challenges of positive intercultural dialogue, and also as a resource for mental health, particularly in contexts of post-traumatic stress.

La Transplanisphère – Compagnie Ndam Se Na

Thursday 12 February: Focus on Image

Masterclass by Davood Maeili
Photography as a tool for storytelling and transmission

Davood Maeili offers a hands-on immersion in photography as a tool for storytelling and transmission, with a focus on moving from individual images to a shared, exhibited narrative. Over two hours, participants will experiment with a simple, reproducible methodology, from photographic intention to selection and spatial display of images.

Artist–author status

Workshop by Pierre Jérôme Adjedj & Amandine Thiriet
Identity/Identities Photos

Using theatre and photography to help refugees reclaim their image as subjects.

Through physical play using theatre techniques, the workshop explores the expression of four archetypal emotions: joy, sadness, anger, fear. The aim is to open up new narratives for each person and foster reflection on identity.

Sur Mesure, Berlin

 

Friday 13 February: Focus on Expression – self-narrative

Masterclass by Souad Naana & Kmar Naouar
From emotion to speech: mediation through the senses

This masterclass offers a sensitive, experiential form of mediation, in which the artwork becomes a support for inner projection. The goal is not to understand the artwork, but to observe what it triggers: emotions, resonances, mental images, and impulses to move.

The set-up is presented as a tool for social intervention, allowing participants to experience art as a vehicle for feeling, to analyse its effects without any hierarchy of knowledge, and to identify principles that can be transferred into their professional practices.

Sama For All

Workshop by Eirini Marna & Antigoni Tsarbopoulou
Identity through poetry

This participatory workshop invites us to explore identity, personal stories, and cultural references through proper names. Inspired by a poem by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, it combines creative writing and theatre-in-education techniques to enable participants to create their own poetic texts.

The approach fosters an open and caring artistic space where participants share their stories, develop mutual understanding, and experiment with playful and performative forms around the theme of the name.

Tenet, Athens

Saturday 14 February: Workshops open to the public

Open day. No registration required, subject to available space.

Activity room

14:30–16:00: R-Lab 93 workshop – Transplanisphère
Experimentation with artistic and collective practices around intercultural creation.

16:00–17:00: R-Lab 93 workshop – Transplanisphère
Continuation of artistic and intercultural exploration, with collaborative exercises and exchanges between participants.

17:00–18:00: R-Lab Cabaret – sharing of the afternoon workshops
Presentation of participants’ creations in a festive, collective moment.

18:00–20:00: After R-Lab – shared festive time
A convivial moment to celebrate the creativity and exchanges of the day.

 

Workshop room

13:00–14:30: Painting workshop – Sama For All
Collective creation through painting to express emotions and personal experiences.

14:30–16:00: Photo-theatre workshop – Sur Mesure
Experimentation with photographic and theatrical staging to tell collective stories.

16:00–17:00: Orality workshop – Lêdji
Oral expression and listening practices around intercultural narratives.

Dance room

14:30–16:00: Afro Dance workshop – Taigué Ahmed
Introduction to Afro dance, exploring rhythm and group movement.

16:00–17:00: Theatre workshop – Tenet
Theatre exercises and role-play to develop expression and confidence in a group.

 

Coworking space B (1st floor)

16:00–18:00: Crochet workshop – James Baldwin Media Library
A collective and friendly creative moment where everyone can discover and deepen crochet techniques.

Reception area

17:00–18:00: Afghan singing workshop – Jawid from La Fédération Asiemut
Introduction to Afghan singing, connected to the country’s culture and musical traditions.