The Valais School of Art

Name

The Valais School of Art

Legal name

EDHEA

Website

https://edhea.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1949

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Art & Design Higher Education

NAICS

Fine Arts Schools (61161), Fine Arts Schools (611610), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Interactive Multimedia Learning Content (Video, Audio, Interactive Lessons) (EDAFACAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Interactive Practice & Skill-Building (Drills, Games, Mastery Practice) (EDAFACAC)

Keywords

• Art education programs
• Design vocational training
• Sound arts studies
• Visual arts degrees
• Higher education teaching

Headquarters

HQ city

Sierre

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Fees: EDHEA generates revenue through student tuition fees charged per semester, with differentiated rates for Swiss/fiscally domiciled students versus foreign students. Additional fees include study contributions and laboratory fees.
2. Public Funding (HES-SO Valais-Wallis): As part of the HES-SO Valais-Wallis public university system, EDHEA receives government funding from the Canton of Valais and participates in cantonal cost-sharing arrangements for student support.
3. Publications and Editions Sales: The school operates an online shop selling publications, editions, books, and merchandise produced by students and faculty.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

EDHEA is a Swiss public art and design school delivering higher education programs in visual arts, sound arts, and graphic design. The institution offers a full educational pathway from vocational training (CFC in Graphic Design and Interactive Media Design), through a preparatory year (Propédeutique Art & Design), to Bachelor degrees (Visual Arts and Sound) and a Master of Arts in Public Spheres + Sound (MAPS+S). Programs are delivered on-campus in Sierre, Valais, with access to specialized laboratories, artist studios, and exhibition spaces.

Product overview

EDHEA (Ecole de design et haute école d'art du Valais / The Valais School of Art) is a Swiss art and design school offering a comprehensive educational portfolio across multiple programs. The institution provides vocational training (CFC programs in Graphic Design and Interactive Media), preparatory education (Propédeutique Art & Design), undergraduate degrees (Bachelor in Fine Arts and Bachelor in Sound Arts), and graduate education (Master of Arts in Public Spheres + Sound). The school operates as part of HES-SO Valais-Wallis and is located in Sierre, with a new campus under construction. Programs emphasize transdisciplinary, experimental approaches combining theory and practice, with particular strengths in visual arts, sound arts, and graphic design.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bachelor en Arts visuels Three-year Bachelor program in Fine Arts with a transdisciplinary and experimental approach, decloisoning the relationship between theory and practice. Students explore moving images, visual cultures, materialities, environments, painting, drawing, sound practices, digital and performative cultures, photography, text, publishing, and exhibition practices. Aimed at prospective undergraduate students holding secondary education credentials.
• Bachelor en Son Interdisciplinary Bachelor program dedicated to the emergence of sound in Western modernity, with particular attention to listening, sound reproduction and diffusion techniques, and their aesthetic and cultural issues. Explores soundscapes, sound-image relationships, acoustic architecture, nature sounds, aurality, and the human voice. Aimed at students specializing in sound arts.
• Master en Arts visuels - MAPS + S Master of Arts in Public Spheres + Sound (MAPS+S) addresses artists wishing to explore relationships between art and environmental, political, and media dimensions of the public sphere. Includes eight annual station sessions combining research activities, seminars, workshops, projections, performances, exhibitions, and public interventions. Aimed at graduate-level artists and researchers.
• Propédeutique Art & Design One-year preparatory program offering solid preparation for entrance competitions to prestigious art and design schools. Opens pathways to visual arts, visual communication, illustration, animation, sound, and cinema programs. Aimed at pre-college students building portfolios for competitive admission.
• Graphiste CFC et Maturité professionnelle intégrée Vocational training program combining the Federal Certificate of Competence (CFC) in Graphic Design with integrated professional maturity (Maturité professionnelle). Aimed at apprentices and full-time students pursuing graphic design certification in Switzerland.
• Interactive Media Designer CFC et Maturité professionnelle intégrée Vocational training program combining CFC in Interactive Media Design with integrated professional maturity. Announced as a new offering for the 2026 admissions cycle. Aimed at apprentices and students pursuing interactive media design certification.
• Maturité professionnelle post-CFC Post-CFC professional maturity program for students who have completed a CFC and wish to access higher education in art and design. Aimed at vocational graduates seeking university admission.
• EDHEA Online Shop - Publications and Editions Online shop selling publications, editions, books, and merchandise produced by students and faculty. Open to the general public, alumni, and supporters of the school.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

25 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Biennale Son (Valais)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on sound arts programming and the annual Sound Symposium (Symposium Son)
• Manoir de la Ville de MartignycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual exhibition partner for MAPS+S program; hosts graduation and jury exhibitions
• MUDAC (Musée de design et d'arts appliqués contemporains, Lausanne)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with Bachelor en Son program for student projects and professional experiences
• Plateforme 10 (Lausanne)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Bachelor en Son for student projects and professional experiences
• Festival Archipel (Geneva)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual collaboration for sound arts education including Whirled Music workshop project
• Musée de la Croix-Rouge (Geneva)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for student projects related to sound and listening practices
• Ferme-Asile (Sion)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership for exhibitions, artist residencies, and collaborative projects
• Musées cantonaux du Valais (Sion)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on exhibitions and research projects including Rhône/Territoires mouvants
• Quartier Général (La Chaux-de-Fonds)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMAPS+S exhibition partner for student work presentations
• CAN - Centre d'art NeuchâtelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExchange and exhibition collaboration with Master programs
• Volumes (Zurich)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual participation in Art Publishing Days salon
• Istituto Svizzero (Rome)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational exchange and collaboration for Master program
• Académie des arts de Vilnius (Lietuva)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational academic partnership for student exchanges
• Nida Art Colony (Lithuania)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational residency partnership for students and alumni
• Fondazione Pistoletto (Biella, Italy)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partnership for artistic research and exchange
• EPFL (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Digital Humanities lab for sound research and interdisciplinary projects
• UNIL (Université de Lausanne)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Department of Oral History for research projects
• UNIGE (Université de Genève)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with NEAD neuroscience lab (Neuroscience of Emotion and Affective Dynamics) for sound perception research
• Musée d'art du Valais (Sion)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEnhanced partnership including Les Complices collaboration, artist residencies, and exhibition programs
• PALP Festival (Bruson)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArtist residency program in collaboration with Musée de Bagnes, offering studios and monthly per diem of CHF 1,500
• Malévoz Quartier Culturel (Monthey)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTwo-month artist residency for graduates with studio and per diem
• La Becque (La Tour-de-Peilz)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResidency for graduates on Lake Geneva shores, established 2019
• Fondation Opale (Lens)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThree-month residency in Australia (Sydney and Aboriginal territories) awarded biennially to exceptional Master graduate
• HES-SO Valais-WalliscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent institution since January 2019; enables cross-disciplinary collaboration with engineering and other applied science schools
• CLR architectes SA / EDMS (Geneva)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture firm partnership for new campus design project 'MOI JE TE VOIS' selected through international competition

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• BFH HKB — Hochschule der Künste Bern: BFH HKB is the Bern University of the Arts, a comprehensive Swiss public arts university covering music, theater, and visual arts/design. It overlaps with EDHEA's design and visual arts offerings but operates at broader institutional scope.
• ZHdK — Zürcher Hochschule der Künste: ZHdK is Switzerland's largest arts university and a clear leader in design, film, and art education. It overlaps with EDHEA at the Bachelor/Master level (including the art and design domains where EDHEA Propédutique alumni subsequently enroll) but operates at significantly greater scale and brand recognition.
• ENSAD — École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs, Paris: ENSAD is one of France's leading public art and design schools, offering programs in visual arts, graphic design, and multimedia. It is comparable to EDHEA at the higher-education, arts-school level and represents the international peer benchmark EDHEA's faculty and curriculum engage with through partnerships.
• UdK Berlin — Universität der Künste Berlin: UdK Berlin is one of Europe's largest publicly funded universities of the arts, covering fine arts, design, music, and performance. It is comparable to EDHEA at the institutional type level (public art school) and is referenced in EDHEA's research collaborations with European peer institutions.

Direct peers

• HSLU D&K — Hochschule Luzern, Design & Kunst: HSLU's Design & Kunst department is a Swiss-German public institution offering Bachelor and Master programs in design, fine arts, and illustration. It competes with EDHEA for design-track students and shares the public-university-of-applied-sciences model under Swiss higher-education policy.
• ECAL — Ecole cantonale d'art de Lausanne: ECAL is the Vaud cantonal art school, the closest geographic and structural analog to EDHEA within the Swiss public higher-education art system. It offers Bachelor and Master programs in visual arts, graphic design, photography, and film, and competes directly with EDHEA for Western Swiss art students. EDHEA Associate Professor Robert Ireland is an ECAL alumnus, evidencing direct talent overlap.
• HEAD — Haute école d'art et de design, Genève: HEAD Genève is HES-SO's Geneva-based sister art and design school, sharing the same parent university network as EDHEA. It offers comparable Bachelor/Master portfolios in visual arts, cinema, and design, and competes for the same pool of Suisse romande applicants and faculty.
• HEAR — Haute école des arts du Rhin: HEAR is a French public art school (Strasbourg/Mulhouse) operating under the French higher-education system with a comparable portfolio of fine arts, design, and sound-related programs. It is structurally comparable to EDHEA as a mid-sized public art school, and Mulhouse in particular shares the cross-border character of EDHEA's Valais location.
• HGK Basel — Hochschule für Gestaltung und Kunst FHNW: HGK Basel is the FHNW Academy of Art and Design in Basel, a Swiss-German counterpart to EDHEA. It offers Bachelor and Master programs across fine arts, design, and media art and serves a similar student profile of public-university art applicants in Switzerland.

Regional players

• SUPSI DACD — Dipartimento ambiente costruzioni e design: SUPSI DACD is the Italian-speaking Swiss counterpart to EDHEA, offering design and art programs within the SUPSI university of applied sciences. It serves a different linguistic region of Switzerland but is structurally and pedagogically comparable to EDHEA as a sister applied-sciences art school.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/edhea.valais
• Instagraminstagram.com/edhea_ch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/edhea

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Valais School of Art