Art & Marges Musee

About

Established 25 years ago as a centre for identifying and promoting outsider art, “Art en Marge” is now a museum. The artworks reflect the centre’s philosophy of promoting artists who remain in the shadows: mad or mentally disabled artists, and outsider artists with no means to access the professional art world. Some are staying in homes for mentally disabled people, in psychiatric hospitals; others practise or have practised various crafts: photographer, junk dealers, cobbler, musician... By stressing the content and artistic dimension of the works we intend to change the way that outsider art is perceived, encouraging viewers to ask questions rather than pass judgement. In these early years of the 21st century the concept of ‘marginal’ (en marge) has manifestly become harder to define and defend. Thus the art currently in vogue is less and less concerned with the concepts of centre and periphery1; and at the same time, outsider art is attracting enormous interest. Furthermore, some of the artists concerned are not happy with being classified as ‘outsiders’. Our approach maintains Art en Marge’s original philosophy: for unlike the defenders of Art Brut as initially defined by Jean Dubuffet, Art en Marge has never been opposed to mainstream art. Hence with no preconceived system and no exploitation the short-term exhibitions will endeavour to achieve a dynamic dialogue between the works of creators socially marginalized by mental illness or disability and the works of professional artists active in the mainstream. Far from being a ‘ghetto’ museum, art)&(marges musee will be a place of exchange, a space for celebrating artists’ individualities, an art without ‘margins’, a museum where every effort is made to ensure that every visitor feels at home.

At a glance

• Typical visit: about 1 hour 30 minutes