Fondation Dubuffet

What Fondation Dubuffet does

Fondation Dubuffet is a French non-profit cultural foundation established by artist Jean Dubuffet in 1973/1974 (sources vary) to preserve, catalogue, and promote his artistic legacy and the Art Brut movement. The foundation operates two physical sites in France: a 19th-century private mansion in Paris that hosts rotating temporary exhibitions, and the Closerie Falbala architectural complex in Périgny-sur-Yerres, which has been listed as a French Historic Monument since 1998. Core offerings include curating monographic and collaborative exhibitions (e.g., the 2026 "Pulsions" show covering Dubuffet's final 1974–1985 period with 150+ works), publishing the authoritative "Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet" scholarly series and exhibition booklets, organizing educational programming such as conferences, writing workshops, and family visits, and producing audio content including the "City art with Jean Dubuffet" podcast about the Tour aux Figures monument.

The foundation runs with a lean staff of approximately six employees, including Director of Scientific Program and Collections Déborah Lehot-Couette, graphic designers, and a web developer. Its revenue model is multi-stream: exhibition admissions at the Paris and Périgny sites, sales of publications through its bookshop and the Galerie Lelong online channel, and institutional foundation funding supplemented by donations. Reproduction rights for Dubuffet's works are administered globally through ADAGP. Its go-to-market is event-driven, relying on rotating exhibitions, educational events, digital channels (website, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, newsletter), and loan partnerships with museums across France, Spain, Germany, and Italy.

Customer-facing segments include the general public and art enthusiasts (primary), art scholars and researchers, families and children, and institutional museums that borrow works for collaborative programming. Notable 2025–2026 collaborations include exhibitions with the Niki Charitable Art Foundation, Musée Français de la Carte à jouer (Issy-les-Moulineaux), Palais des arts et du festival (Dinard), Bourse du Commerce, Musée Picasso Barcelona, Grand Palais RMN, Opera Gallery Paris, Pace Gallery Berlin, and Museo Novecento in Florence. The foundation does not develop proprietary technology; its core capability is curatorial, archival, and rights-management expertise.

Name

Fondation Dubuffet

Legal name

Fondation Dubuffet

Website

https://fondationdubuffet.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Fondation Dubuffet is a French non-profit cultural foundation that preserves and promotes Jean Dubuffet's artistic legacy and the Art Brut movement through exhibitions, scholarly publications, and educational programming at its Paris headquarters and the Closerie Falbala historic monument in Périgny-sur-Yerres.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Art Museum Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (712110), Historical Sites (712120)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museum & Landmark Guided Tours (Skip-the-line/Docent-led) (THAJAAAC), Monuments, Statues & Memorials (THAJACAB), History, Heritage & Museum-Focused Study Tours (THAKAGAN)

Keywords

• Art Brut preservation
• Contemporary art foundation
• Cultural heritage preservation
• Art exhibition curation
• Scholarly art publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Exhibition admissions: Revenue from visitors attending exhibitions at the Paris headquarters and Closerie Falbala sites.
2. Publications and bookshop: Sale of exhibition catalogues, booklets, and publications related to Jean Dubuffet's work. Available at the bookshop and online.
3. Foundation funding: Operational funding as a French cultural foundation, likely supplemented by donations and institutional support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Fondation Dubuffet curates and hosts temporary exhibitions of Jean Dubuffet's works and collaborative shows with related artists, manages public access to the Closerie Falbala architectural monument in Périgny-sur-Yerres, and publishes the authoritative 'Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet' covering the artist's complete oeuvre. It complements these with educational programming (conferences, workshops, family visits), audio-documentary podcasts on monumental public sculptures, and an online and on-site bookshop for catalogues and publications.

Product overview

Fondation Dubuffet is an art foundation dedicated to preserving and promoting the legacy of Jean Dubuffet. The foundation operates as a single unified institution managing two physical locations: a 19th-century private mansion in Paris hosting temporary exhibitions, and the Closerie Falbala architectural complex in Périgny-sur-Yerres. The foundation's core offerings include curating and hosting exhibitions of Jean Dubuffet's works and related artists, publishing the authoritative Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet (cataloguing the artist's complete works), organizing educational events including conferences, seminars, and workshops, providing public access to the Closerie Falbala monument, and producing documentary audio content about Dubuffet's monumental sculptures.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Exhibition Visits

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 years of continuous operation as cultural institution
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Grand Palais RMN, ParisminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 December 2025Exhibition 'Drawing outside the lines' featuring Jean Dubuffet's work from the 'Métro' series among 300+ works from Centre Pompidou's collection.
• Musée Français de la Carte à jouer, Issy-les-MoulineauxcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 December 2025Partnership for exceptional exhibition on Tour aux Figures, marking 40th anniversary of the monument's location choice on Île Saint-Germain. Exhibition includes sculptures, drawings, paintings, and archive documents, some never before seen.
• Musée Picasso, BarcelonaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 November 2025Exhibition 'Ubu painter Alfred Jarry and the arts' featuring Jean Dubuffet alongside works that explore impact on Surrealists and Collège de Pataphysique artists.
• Museo Novecento and French Institute, FlorenceminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 October 2025Seminar 'KOPAC, DUBUFFET, FALZONI, BRETON… Un'avventura internazionale tra Surrealismo, Arte Informale e Art Brut'. Déborah Lehot-Couette, director of scientific program, presented on links between Dubuffet and Slavko Kopac.
• Opera Gallery, ParisminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 16 October 2025Exhibition 'Jean Dubuffet: L'Hourloupe et son sillage (1962-1982)' coinciding with Paris Art Week 2025 and 40th anniversary of artist's passing.
• Niki Charitable Art Foundation (NCAF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Collaborative partnership for 'Jean Dubuffet & Niki de Saint Phalle, Chassés croisés' exhibition. The unique confrontation brings together more than 60 works by both artists from public and private collections. Joint symposium organized alongside the exhibition.
• Espace Andrée ChedidminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Partnership for writing workshops 'Scribulations Hourloupéennes' held in conjunction with 'Dubuffet Monumental' exhibition.
• Le Doyenné, BrioudeminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 28 June 2025Exhibition 'Jean Dubuffet: Le défi au quotidien' with all works from the Fondation Dubuffet collection. Forty years after retrospective at Fondation Maeght.
• Musée d'art moderne de FontevraudminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 7 June 2025Exhibition 'Visages magiques Gaston Chaissac & les autres' comparing works of Chaissac with major artists including Jean Dubuffet. Foundation lent ten lithographs.
• Palais des arts et du festival, DinardcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 May 2025Exhibition 'Jean Dubuffet. The swell of the virtual' presenting 150 works including paintings, drawings, sculptures, models tracing the L'Hourloupe cycle. Organized in close collaboration with the Dubuffet Foundation.
• Musée du Niel, HyèresminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 3 May 2025Exhibition 'Dubuffet et les magiciens Expressions singulières 1945-2000' presenting works from non-conventional artists with Jean Dubuffet as entry point.
• Pace Gallery, BerlinminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 2 May 2025Exhibition 'Reverse alchemy Dubuffet, Basquiat, Nava' focusing on redefinition of figuration by the three artists.
• Musée des Arts décoratifs, ParisminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 March 2025Exhibition 'Le langage des murs. Estampages de la Chine à Notre-Dame' featuring Jean Dubuffet's practice among selections from Chinese and French museum collections.
• Bourse du Commerce, ParisminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 March 2025Exhibition 'Clair-obscur' featuring Jean Dubuffet among 28 artists. Foundation lending works to this exhibition exploring chiaroscuro as visual and symbolic language.
• ADAGPcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 February 2025Ongoing partnership for conference series. ADAGP serves as venue for symposiums and conferences related to Dubuffet exhibitions. ADAGP also collects copyright for the artist worldwide.
• Galerie LelongcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Distributor for catalogues and publications including 'Sculptures monumentales, Tour aux figures et autres' - the latest volume of the Catalogue des travaux de Jean Dubuffet.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Centre Pompidou: France's flagship modern and contemporary art museum, with which Fondation Dubuffet collaborates (Drawing outside the lines exhibition). Comparable as a major loans partner and competitor for curatorial attention, but operates at vastly larger scale and breadth.
• Bourse de Commerce / Pinault Collection: Major private contemporary art museum in Paris that hosted the 'Clair-obscur' exhibition featuring Dubuffet. Comparable as a major Paris private art venue with rotating exhibitions, but focused on contemporary art rather than a single historical artist.
• Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris: Major municipal Paris museum covering modern art including Dubuffet in its collection. Comparable as a Paris-based institution exhibiting 20th-century art, though publicly funded and broader in scope than the foundation's single-artist focus.

Regional players

• Galerie Lelong & Co. Paris-based gallery and distribution partner of the foundation's publications (Catalogue des travaux). Comparable as a channel that brings historical modern art to market, though operating as a commercial gallery rather than a non-profit foundation.

Direct peers

• Musée Picasso Paris: Major French museum dedicated to a single artist's oeuvre, presenting temporary exhibitions and managing a catalogued collection. Direct partner of Fondation Dubuffet (Ubu painter exhibition 2025) and comparable in single-artist museum operations.
• Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain: Paris-based private foundation dedicated to contemporary art exhibitions and artist commissions. Comparable as a French private art foundation with rotating exhibitions, public programming, and publication activity, though focused on contemporary rather than historical art.
• Fondation Maeght: Independent French private art foundation that operates exhibitions, public programs, and a sculpture garden dedicated to 20th-century modern art. Closest structural analog to Fondation Dubuffet as a heritage single-artist foundation with permanent site, exhibitions, and publishing program.
• Fondation Henri Cartier-Bresson: Paris-based private foundation dedicated to preserving and exhibiting the work of a single 20th-century artist. Operates a similar model of exhibitions, publications, and partner-institution loans, comparable in scope and non-profit structure to Fondation Dubuffet.
• Alberto Giacometti Foundation: Paris-based private foundation preserving and exhibiting the work of a single 20th-century artist. Closely comparable in mission (legacy preservation, cataloguing, exhibitions) and operational structure to Fondation Dubuffet.
• Peggy Guggenheim Collection Venice: European private museum dedicated to a single collector's legacy and modern art. Comparable as a small-staff, single-curator institution focused on modern art exhibitions and international loans, though based in Italy rather than France.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@fondation-dubuffet
• Facebookfacebook.com/fondationdubuffet
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fondation-jean-dubuffet
• Instagraminstagram.com/fondationdubuffet

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Fondation Dubuffet