Cover image: Josephine Baker Paris 100 (detail)
Image courtesy of Brian Scott Bagley

After writing about the extraordinary "Paradoxes of Exile" conference on Josephine Baker and James Baldwin that was organized by Harvard University's Hutchins Center for African & African American Research in Paris earlier this month, I was prepared to publish an article about an entirely different topic this week.

But several additional things have recently happened/are happening in France re: Baker, and all of them merit attention on this blog.

DEATH OF AKIO BOUILLON-BAKER

Akio Bouillon-Baker, the first adopted son of Josephine Baker and Jo Bouillon (Baker's fourth husband), was found dead in his home in Saint-Cyprien, Dordogne on November 25, 2025.

He was 73 years old.

Akio Bouillon-Baker at the inauguration of
Place Josephine Baker in Paris in February 2001
© Entrée to Black Paris

To date, I have not found any information re: the cause of his death.

Bouillon-Baker was adopted from an orphanage in Tokyo in 1954 and grew up at the Château des Milandes in the Périgord region.  He was extremely attached to his adopted homeland and will be buried there.

JAZZER JOSEPHINE

On the heels of the "Paradoxes of Exile" conference, for which the opening session was held at the Sorbonne Nouvelle, the university is hosting a second conference called "Jazzer Joséphine."

Flier for Jazzer Josephine

The Sorbonne's Institute for Research in Theater Studies (IRET), an IRET subgroup called SeFeA (a laboratory that studies the contemporary poetics of Francophone dramaturgy shaped by colonial history and the history of migration), and the university's training and research institute (UFR) on arts and media organized this two-day colloquium to spotlight Baker's influence on modern and contemporary creative practice, whether on the stage or through the visual arts, literature, or music.

It will be held on November 27 and 28, 2025 at:

l'Athènée Théâtre Louis-Jouvet
4 square de l'Opéra Louis-Jouvet
75009 Paris
Metro: Opéra (Lines 3, 7, and 8); Havre-Caumartin (Lines 3 et 9); Saint-Lazare (Lines 12, 13, and 14)

Multiple French and foreign universities and cultural organizations, including Louisiana State University in the U.S., partnered with the Sorbonne to organize this event.

There is no charge to attend.  

On both days, sessions will begin at 9 AM and end at 5 PM. To the best of my knowledge, all of them will be delivered in French.

Musical interludes will punctuate both days of the event.

On Friday, November 28, a closing cocktail will be offered at 5 PM.

4TH ANNIVERSARY OF JOSEPHINE BAKER'S INDUCTION INTO THE PANTHEON

On Sunday, November 30, from 4 PM - 5:30 PM, the town of Le Vésinet, the Joséphine Baker Commemorative Site team, the Le Vésinet Historical Society, the Fondation pour le Vésinet, and the Musée Joséphine Baker et des Afro-Descendants de Paris are celebrating the 4th anniversary of Josephine Baker's induction into the Pantheon.

They are hosting a guided tour of the gardens at Josephine Baker's mansion, Le Beau Chêne, followed by an illumination ceremony featuring live music by a Paris Opera pianist.

Flier for 4th anniversary celebration of 
Josephine Baker's induction into the Pantheon

This event is free and open to the public. Register here: https://villeduvesinet.fr/evenements/celebrons-lanniversaire-de-la-pantheonisation-de-josephine-baker/

Note that you should register for the tour and the light show separately.

JOSEPHINE BAKER PARIS 100

Flier for 25 FOR 25 ON 25 FOR JOSEPHINE BAKER

For years, Brian Scott Bagley has worked tirelessly to honor the legacy of Josephine Baker.

In 2020, with the approval and blessing of the Bouillon-Baker family, he began the work of establishing an official museum in honor of Baker in Paris and created the Musée Joséphine Baker et des Afro-Descendents.

2025 is the centennial year of Baker's arrival in Paris, and 2026 is the centennial year of her birth.

It is also the 20th anniversary of Bagley's arrival in Paris, when he began his career as a choreographer by working on Jérôme Savary's In Search of Josephine Baker at the Opéra Comique.

On November 25, 2025, Bagley launched a fundraising campaign to support an exhibition called Josephine Baker Paris 100, which will celebrate the centennial of Baker's arrival in Paris.

He was not aware that Akio Bouillon-Baker died that very day.

The owners of Le Caroussel, the site where Baker opened her first Chez Josephine club in Paris and where Bagley organized the placement of a Josephine Baker plaque, have agreed to provide space for a daytime exhibition of artifacts owned by the Musée Joséphine Baker et des Afro-Descendants from December 2025 through March 2026. 

The exhibition will be open Monday through Saturday from 10 AM until 4 PM. 

Unveiling of Josephine Baker plaque at Le Caroussel
© Entrée to Black Paris

Le Caroussel
© Entrée to Black Paris

The cost for the rental space is 2500€ per month.

To defray costs, the entry fee for the exhibition has been set at 20€, with a reduced rate of 10€ applied to children under the age of 14.

All donors to the 25 FOR 25 ON 25 FOR JOSEPHINE BAKER fundraiser will be able to see the exhibition at no charge and will receive a signed poster from the show.

At their request, they will also be able to have their names included on a donors' plaque.

Donors contributing 500€ or more will receive Josephine Smile, a limited edition photo flip book containing rare images from the Musée Josephine Baker et des Afro-descendants archives.

To give, contact Brian Scott Bagley by:

Telephone:  +336.29.26.85.18
Email: museejosephinebakerparis@gmail.com or brianscottbagley@gmail.com 

Le Caroussel
40, rue Pierre Fontaine
75009 Paris
Metro: Blanche (Line 2)

Brian Scott Bagley and items from
the Musée Joséphine Baker et des Afro-descendents
Image courtesy of Brian Scott Bagley