Mission & Vision

L’AiR Arts is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to support intercultural exchange through international art residency programs. By facilitating cross-cultural mobility for artists and cultural professionals from around the world, L’AiR Arts seeks to promote diversity, inclusion and international understanding through artistic and cultural heritage.

Actions Led

L’AiR Arts residency is based in the last surviving atelier of the historic international artists’ community of Cité Falguière in the Montparnasse district of Paris. Once home to prominent artists including Gauguin, Modigliani, Soutine, Foujita and Brancusi, Atelier 11 Cité Falguière now operates as an International Arts Research Residency.

Dedicated to the legacy of the École de Paris, L’AiR Arts residency program offers a multidisciplinary platform based on four pillars: intercultural exchange, research, professional development, and creation. At the crossroads between heritage and contemporary arts, the residencies and public programming create a unique experience connecting past and present, local and global. 

Since 2021, L’AiR Arts, in partnership with Cité Falguière Association, has been actively supporting the rehabilitation efforts for Atelier 11. Built in the 1870s by artists for artists, Atelier 11 represents an iconic and irreplaceable living testimony of an artist’s studio evolving throughout three centuries. In 2023, the site was awarded a heritage label – protecting Atelier 11 that is in urgent need for extensive restoration to continue serving artists and the public.

Projects that US Donors can Support

Through Friends of Fondation de France, U.S. donors have the opportunity to contribute to exciting projects that preserve the living heritage of Atelier 11:

– cross-cultural residency programs for artists and cultural professionals, including those at risk, in exile, or coming from developing countries

– diverse cultural and solidarity events for the general public, artistic and academic community, and children 

– rehabilitation and maintenance of the Atelier 11 heritage site

Find out more through our blog article published on April 26, 2024.