The French Association for the Conservation, Study and Promotion of Playful Heritage

Founded in late 2023, the Association for the Conservation, Study, and Promotion of Playful Heritage (CVPL) is a non-profit cultural and scientific association of general interest.

It brings together collectors, researchers, creators, publishers, associations,

cultural institutions, local authorities, and heritage professionals who pool their knowledge, skills, and resources to promote this heritage and advance its objectives:

- to support the preservation and management of playful heritage in all its

forms and from all eras: board games, card games, games with pawns, miniatures,

simulation games, skill games, role-playing games—including live-action role-playing games—, popular play practices, publishing archives, game rules, digital media, and video games.

- to promote the consolidation, preservation, and dissemination of collections and documentary resources to contribute to the creation of permanent spaces for conservation, exhibition, research, outreach, and activities throughout France.

Currently, there is only one museum dedicated to the culture of games, the one in Issy-les-Moulineaux, which focuses on classic playing cards.

To raise awareness of the need to recognize and protect this cultural heritage before its older parts disappear, the organization has had the opportunity to create exhibitions for events marking milestones in the history of gaming:

- Role-playing games: 50 years of history, for the 50 Years of Role-Playing Games Festival in Senlis in 2024

- War games: Two centuries of historical simulations, in partnership with the Cannes International Games Festival in 2026

- François Marcela-Froideval: Chronicles of a Visionary (in homage to the comic book author and pioneer of simulation games in France), in partnership with the Château de Paley and the Seine-et-Marne department, in 2026

- Other exhibition and partnership projects are underway.

All these exhibitions are available upon request.

The association is thus gradually developing its community and welcoming new members passionate about games, their history, preservation, and transmission.

In order to enrich its collections and preserve sets sometimes threatened with dispersal, the CVPL is now launching a donation drive. This drive concerns games, accessories, archives, editorial documents, rules, catalogs, digital media, and any object or artifact useful for understanding gaming practices. As game collections can become quite large, the association also needs secure storage facilities, its main premises being in Parthenay. Donations can be made throughout the year, particularly during major industry events such as the Parthenay International Games Festival (FLIP). These donations help raise awareness among collectors, families, publishers, creators, and the general public about the importance of preserving and documenting their collections.

The CVPL can also support local authorities in their projects related to gaming heritage. It can provide advice and expertise for the identification and evaluation of collections, their inventory, documentation, conservation, cultural enhancement, and public access. It can also contribute to defining a scientific and cultural project, designing exhibitions, and developing partnerships with stakeholders in the gaming, cultural, educational, and scientific sectors. To carry out its activities, the association can organize studies, meetings, training sessions, conferences, exhibitions, workshops, demonstrations, publications, and events.

By recognizing play as a living heritage, the CVPL aims to contribute to

preserving a collective memory, encouraging research, and transmitting the cultural, historical, educational, and social richness of playful practices to the widest possible audience.

Website :www.patrimoineludique.fr

Contact : contact@patrimoineludique.fr