In 1973, Monique Wittig published Le Corps Lesbien (The Lesbian Body), her third book, an unclassifiable work that was pioneering in its use of language and political stance. This book continued to break new ground, which Wittig, writer, theorist and lesbian activist, continued to expand upon, in the wake of materialist feminism and the struggles of sexual and gender minorities, between France and the United States, until her death in 2003. It is therefore a double anniversary, the fiftieth anniversary of Le Corps Lesbien and the twentieth anniversary of author’s death, which is celebrated for this ‘Wittig Year’ in 2023.

Cap pour l’Île des vivantxs (Cap for the Island of the Living) is a year-long program that unfolded throughout 2023. It began with monthly collective readings of texts written or translated by Wittig and her intellectual circle, put into perspective by those who (re)published, studied, interpreted, and transmitted them.
A highlight took place in December, with a range of events designed to celebrate, complicate, and renew both Wittig’s legacy and the relevance of current struggles and artistic practices. The program included a workshop on the connections between Wittig and typography, conversations on the history of lesbian journals, on materialist feminism, as well as on racial struggles within feminist and lesbian movements in France. It also featured collective workshops on translation and radio creation, self-defense sessions with chosen-gender participation, and performances and readings by emerging writers.

For this occasion, Bétonsalon reconnects with the ties the art center had already woven with Wittig. Some of her editions and archives were featured in the 2013 exhibition “Fais un effort pour te souvenir. Ou, à défaut, invente” (curated by Aliocha Imhoff and Kantuta Quiros, le peuple qui manque), whose title was borrowed from Les Guérillères. That same year, 36 Short Stories was published to mark Bétonsalon’s tenth anniversary, an anthology that included the article “Histoire”, written by Wittig and Sande Zeig for their Brouillon pour un dictionnaire des amantes (1973).