Originally confined to the biological realm and for a long time viewed negatively, the notion of métissage has progressively extended to the cultural sphere. What does this concept add to the contemporary world and its cultural exchanges? Two things that the word "culture" leaves in the shadows: métissage involves the body and carries traces of violence. The term "cultural métissage" thus appears paradoxical. On one hand, it invites us to understand cultures through the body; on the other, it implies the inseparable dimension of this encounter: violence. Are métissages truly carriers of new values, new meanings? Or, under the aegis of unstoppable globalization, do they reproduce the hegemony of the dominant cultural and socio-economic model?
In reality, métissages are testimonies to a constant transformation. They herald a break, a novelty, and a radical change that cannot leave any of the parties indifferent. They break down borders and separations by revealing their intrinsic inconsistency. Instead of emphasizing the differences between cultures, they highlight their contiguities, inviting us to consider identities in a constant and original process of evolution, which never leads to societies and cultures separated by clear-cut boundaries, except those we ourselves produce.
