« Children of the world » is one of the major work of Rachid Khimoune. These monumentals bronze representing children from all the continents are adorned with ground.

From the terrace, they dominate the garden of Bercy in Paris. They are 21 oriented toward the meadow. 21 scultures as the 21th century, as the number of steps needed to their creation.

Since 2001, the permanent outdoor exhibit of these “children of the world” has been welcomed by the critics and has been a real popular success. This proves that faithfulness to the roots and cultural exchange are still core values.

Two copies of each sculpture have been made. One has joined the rest of the 20 statues, on the Simone de Beauvoir Bridge, close to the Minister of Finance in Paris. And thanks to the generosity of some prestigious sponsors, the other copy has come back to its country of origin.

“ I take the street and then I give it back”

Rachid Khimoune had the inspiration for the “Children of the world” while watching my daughter and her friends doing a farandole in the school yard.

We’re back in the 80’s and the artist travels to several capital cities to take “the skin of the streets”. As he explains himself in the book dedicated to him, “every asphalt is similar although manhole covers and tree protectors are all different from one city to another, as a tattoo on the skin. These signs reveal the very identity of the city… He also says “I would have molded the words; Water – Gas - Electricity – Sanitation in all the languages”

Once there and after the numerous administrative problems, which would become later anecdotes and stories of the journey, he makes an elastomer moulage of the elements he had chosen previously. In the street, the process is always surprising for the passersby and the artist like to theatralise this part of the process.

With a really good master of the materials, the artistic process is rich and very singular. Looking for the original roots of the peoples, Rachid has travelled the cities around the world, making moulage of manhole covers, pavements, breached asphalt, what he calls “his extraterrestres” - because extracted from the soil- and then dress up the characters like a tailor.

On the terrace of the garden of Bercy, Rachid Khimoune likes to meet the children visiting his work and willing to know him. The artist look them climb on the sculptures and hide in the hollow back side. Together they read and interpret the inscriptions that are on the statues. The “Children of the world” get all their meaning, through the eyes of the kids.

The extra copies, made thanks to the generosity of the sponsors, scattered around the world, create a twin partnership between Paris and the other capital cities.