MAMCO Genève

What MAMCO Genève does

MAMCO Genève (Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain) is a public art museum in Geneva, Switzerland, founded in 1994 and dedicated to modern and contemporary art. The institution is governed by FONDAMCO, a public foundation established under cantonal law L 9418 at the Grand Conseil de Genève on 2004-12-18, which provides statutory anchoring for institutional funding from the État de Genève and Ville de Genève. MAMCO maintains a permanent collection featuring dedicated cabinets such as the Concrete Poetry Cabinet established in 2017, and serves general visitors, families, art professionals, and partner cultural institutions through exhibitions, educational programming, and accessibility services including French Sign Language tours and descriptive/tactile tours.

The museum's core products and offerings center on a digital ecosystem built around the mamco.ch bilingual website, an online publications shop, a curated MAMCO Journal, and a Campaign Monitor-powered newsletter. Its exhibition program operates through an extensive 'hors-les-murs' (off-site) model with institutional partners including Musée Rath, MAH, Grand Théâtre Genève, SaSA, Ecole professionnelle de Genève, Kunsthaus Biel Centre d'art Bienne, and Les Cinémas du Grütli — a network that has intensified while the main MAMCO building undergoes renovation. The museum also operates a collection-lending program extending its works to institutions in Switzerland and internationally (Venice Biennale, Art Genève, European museums).

MAMCO's business model is institutional rather than commercial: primary revenue derives from public funding (État de Genève, Ville de Genève), private foundation grants (Fondation Leenaards, Fondation Valeria Rossi di Montelera, Fondation Lombard Odier, Stanley Thomas Johnson Foundation, FSEA, Famille Sandoz, Fondation du Groupe Pictet), and corporate sponsorship (JTI, Loterie Romande). Supplementary earned income is generated through ticketed special exhibitions, sale of exhibition catalogs and monographs via the publications shop, membership dues from Les Amis du MAMCO, and fees from international art lending. The museum offers free admission to its permanent collection and operates with a core staff of approximately 8 employees.

Name

MAMCO Genève

Legal name

FONDAMCO (Fondation publique de droit cantonal genevois)

Website

https://mamco.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MAMCO Genève is a public art museum in Geneva, founded in 1994 and governed by the FONDAMCO public foundation under cantonal law. It serves general visitors, families, and partner institutions through modern and contemporary art exhibitions, educational programming, a permanent collection with specialized cabinets, and an off-site 'hors-les-murs' exhibition network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Geneva

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Ticketed Exhibitions: Revenue from admission fees for special exhibitions and events
2. Publications and Shop Sales: Sale of exhibition catalogs, books, and gifts through the museum shop and online
3. Membership and Donations: Les Amis du MAMCO (Friends of MAMCO) membership program and charitable donations
4. Government and Foundation Funding: Public funding from État de Genève, Ville de Genève, and private foundation grants
5. Art Lending (Prêts): Lending works from collection to other institutions internationally

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MAMCO Genève is a public museum of modern and contemporary art that presents exhibitions of its permanent collection and temporary shows (delivered on-site when open and through an off-site "hors-les-murs" program at partner venues while the main building undergoes renovation), sells exhibition catalogs and art books through its publications shop, lends works from its collection to museums in Switzerland and internationally, and delivers educational and accessibility programs (tours, family workshops, French Sign Language tours, descriptive/tactile tours).

Product overview

MAMCO Genève (Musée d'art moderne et contemporain) operates as a public art museum offering a digital platform for exhibition programs, permanent collection access, publications, educational services, and community engagement. The museum functions through several interconnected offerings: its Collection/Catalogue provides digital access to permanent holdings; the Exhibitions Program features collaborative off-site exhibitions with partner institutions; Publications/Shop offers catalog and book sales; the MAMCO Journal publishes art criticism; Educational Programs deliver tours and family activities; and Resources provide audio-visual documentation. The digital ecosystem is managed via a website portal (mamco.ch) with integrated newsletter services, supporting the museum's mission to make contemporary art accessible to the public.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Exhibitions Program Off-site and collaborative exhibition program featuring partnerships with institutions such as Musée Rath, Kunsthaus Biel Centre d'art Bienne (KBCB), SaSA archaeological site, Grand Théâtre Genève, EPG, and Les Cinémas du Grütli, offering diverse contemporary art exhibitions. Audiences include general visitors attending ticketed special exhibitions and free access to the permanent collection.
• Educational Programs (Médiation) Family activities, flash tours, free tours, afterwork tours, descriptive and tactile tours, French Sign Language tours, and performances designed to make exhibitions accessible to diverse audiences. Targets families, school-age children, the visually impaired, and the Deaf community.
• Publications / Shop Online shop offering exhibition catalogs, artist monographs, art books, and publications related to the museum's collection and exhibitions, including works on Concrete Poetry, Robert Filliou, Rosemarie Castoroco, and other artists. Co-edition partners include HEAD – Genève, jrpl editions, and Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther und Franz König.
• MAMCO Journal Recurrent museum journal publication (e.g. issue 16 referenced in current programming) featuring articles on contemporary art, artist interviews, and exhibition reviews. Editorial leadership tied to the Director's office (Lionel Bovier).
• Art Lending / Collection Lending (Prêts) Art lending program that loans works from the museum's permanent collection to partner museums and institutions in Switzerland and internationally, extending reach to events such as the Venice Biennale and Art Genève as well as museums across Europe and beyond.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• FONDATION MAMCOcoreOthers · 18 December 2004The public foundation (FONDAMCO) established by law L 9418 at the Grand Conseil de Genève, responsible for the museum's governance and operations
• État de GenèvecoreOthersState of Geneva provides institutional funding and support to MAMCO as a public cultural institution
• Ville de GenèvecoreOthersCity of Geneva provides municipal funding and support to the museum
• Kunsthaus Biel Centre d'art Bienne (KBCB)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership for exhibitions including Mirella Bentivoglio: Sabotaging Language (October 2027–January 2028) and John M Armleder: Le fantôme de la chance (June–September 2026)
• Musée RathflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue for MAMCO x MAH exhibition (Sylvia Sleigh and Re-Collection, June–October 2026) while MAMCO undergoes renovation
• Musée d'art et d'histoire de Genève (MAH)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative exhibition partner for the Sylvia Sleigh retrospective and Refaire collection feminist art project
• SaSA - Site archéologique Saint-AntoineflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew cultural space for which MAMCO curated an inaugural artistic intervention featuring Joana Hadjithomas & Khalil Joreige's archaeological-themed works (September–November 2026)
• Grand Théâtre GenèveflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative screening partnership while both institutions undergo renovation, featuring Derek Fordjour & Nick Lehane's Fly Away (January–February 2027)
• Ecole professionnelle de Genève (EPG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMAMCO x EPG exhibition featuring Guan Xiao at Temple de Châtelaine (April–June 2027)
• Les Cinémas du GrütlicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFilm partnership for closing event of Sylvia Sleigh exhibition, featuring Věra Chytilová film program
• HEAD – GenèvecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-edition partner for multiple museum publications including Ecart Geneva 1969-1982 and various exhibition catalogs
• jrpl editionscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary co-edition partner for museum publications, distributing exhibition catalogs and art books
• Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther und Franz KönigcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational publisher and bookseller co-editing MAMCO publications including Tishan Hsu and Verena Loewensberg catalogs

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Palais de Tokyo: Paris center dedicated exclusively to contemporary art with a model similar to MAMCO's (free access, thematic temporary exhibitions, public funding support). Comparable in curatorial ambition and operating model.
• Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst: Zurich-based contemporary art museum focused on post-1960 art with similar curatorial ambition and Swiss public-facing operating model. Directly comparable in mission, scale, and exhibition programming.
• Musée d'art et d'histoire de Genève (MAH): Geneva's principal public art museum and a flagship MAMCO partner (joint Sylvia Sleigh and 'Refaire collection' exhibitions). Comparable as a publicly funded Geneva museum with overlapping contemporary art programming and shared audiences.
• Schaulager Basel: Basel-based contemporary art institution combining storage, research, and exhibition. Comparable to MAMCO in its focus on modern and contemporary holdings with a curatorial research orientation.
• Kunsthaus Biel Centre d'art Bienne (KBCB): Contemporary art center in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. KBCB is a flagship exhibition partner of MAMCO (e.g., Mirella Bentivoglio and John M Armleder exhibitions), operates in the same regional contemporary art ecosystem with comparable programming scale.
• Centre d'Art Contemporain Genève: Geneva-based contemporary art center with similar programming model (free access, temporary exhibitions, public funding). Directly comparable as a contemporary art institution serving the same Geneva audience and ecosystem.
• Fri Art Kunsthalle Fribourg: Fribourg contemporary art center with comparable Swiss public-facing contemporary art programming and similar reliance on cantonal and private funding partnerships.
• Kunsthalle Basel: Basel institution for contemporary art exhibitions. Receives MAMCO collection loans (Dial-A-Poem Switzerland at Kunsthalle Basel) and shares the model of a non-collecting or limited-collecting contemporary art kunsthalle.

Broad incumbents

• Centre Pompidou: Major European institution for modern and contemporary art. Comparable in mission (modern and contemporary focus) but operates as a much larger global incumbent with broader collection and programming scope.
• Kunsthaus Zürich: Switzerland's largest art museum with a substantial modern and contemporary collection. Operates as a broad incumbent with overlapping contemporary programming but at significantly greater scale and broader historical scope than MAMCO.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mamco-gen%C3%A8ve

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 MAMCO Genève