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About

“Drawing is the first art of childhood. It is also the first known art of our prehistoric ancestors. Long looked down on in favour of painting and pushed aside, it has made a strong comeback in recent years, in art schools, galleries and museums. It was time to give this art its full scope and devote to it an annual festival, both popular and demanding.”

Frédéric Pajak, artistic director

The Festival du Dessin was founded in Arles in 2023 on the initiative of Vera Michalski, president of the Libella publishing group and founder of the Jan Michalski Foundation, and Frédéric Pajak, writer, draughtsman and head of the publishing house Les Cahiers dessinés. Its third edition drew 159,000 visits.

The fourth edition, from April 18 to May 17, 2026, is headlined by the group exhibition Viva l’Italia!, brought together with the help of the Collezione Ramo and the William Cuendet Foundation & Atelier de Saint-Prex.

Some forty solo exhibitions bring together renowned artists such as Fernand Léger, Jean-Michel Alberola, Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen, Germaine Richier and Louis Soutter, alongside lesser-known names such as Léon Bongrain. Particular attention goes to Ceija Stojka, a Roma artist who survived the death camps, and to two 17th- and 18th-century draughtsmen of startling modernity from the collections of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Nicolas Lagneau and Jean-Jacques Lequeu.

Young people have their place too, with The children of Arles exhibit and work by students from the schools of decorative arts in Paris, Florence and Athens. Honorary president: Éric Cantona.

REMERCIEMENTS

The Drawing Festival is organised thanks to the invaluable collaboration of numerous institutions, foundations, companies and individuals, to whom we extend our warmest thanks: La maison Hermès Le Consulat Général d’Italie à Marseille L’Institut culturel italien de Marseille Le Museon Arlaten – Musée de Provence Le Musée Réattu Lee Ufan Arles La Fondation Manuel Rivera-Ortiz L’Association du Méjan Croisière Collezione Ramo, Milan Archivio Crepax, Milan Archivio Buzzati, Milan ; Fondation Dino Buzzati Fondo Pasolini, Archivio Contemporaneo Bonsanti, Gabinetto Vieusseux, Florence La Bibliothèque nationale de France et son Département des estampes et de la photographie, Paris Le Musée Jenisch Vevey - Cabinet cantonal des estampes, Fondation William Cuendet & Atelier de Saint-Prex La Collection Marin Karmitz L’Association des Amis du Petit Palais, Genève Le Mémorial de la Shoah, Paris La Fondation Kai Dikhas, Berlin La Galerie Martel, Paris La Galerie Anthologie, Paris La Galerie Loeve&Co, Paris La Galerie Loevenbruck, Paris La Galerie Chave, Vence La Galerie Templon, Paris La Galerie Documents 15, Paris La Galerie By Lara Sedbon, Paris La Galerie Dilecta, Paris Keteleer Gallery La Galerie de la Béraudière, Bruxelles L’Atelier CREAHM L’École des Arts décoratifs - PSL (Paris) L’Académie des Beaux-Arts de Florence (ABAF) L’École supérieure des Beaux-Arts d’Athènes (ASFA) La compagnie Lanicolacheur Le centre hospitalier d'Arles Les Cinémas Le Méjan - Actes Sud La Kabine Le Théâtre municipal d'Arles L'École nationale supérieure de la photographie Arles Créative Taxis Arles Provence L'Office de tourisme d’Arles La Médiathèque d’Arles L'espace Richterbuxtorf, Lausanne Le Festival Ciao Moka, Marseille Supersoniks La Librairie Actes Sud Arles BD La librairie Les Grandes Largeurs La librairie du Palais As well as support from: Le Géant des Beaux-Arts Les Rencontres de la photographie d’Arles Atelier SHL THANKS Sébastien Abot, Arthur Aillaud, Paula Aisemberg, Irina Zucca Alessandrelli, Atelier Sorel, Sylvie Aubenas, Joan Ayrton, Manuela Bachmann Bernasconi, Cosima Balsan, Stefano et Daniela Barbiani, Florent Basiletti, Luc Bellier, Cyril Borne, Brigitte Bouchard, Cyril Brunet, Régine Buxtorf, Annaluce Canali, Joël Cantona, Gion Capeder, Pauline Capitani, Cloé Castellas, Nathalie Chaix, Madeleine Chave, Graziella Chiarcossi, Aymar du Chatenet, Jean du Chatenet, Pauline Chougnet, Stéphane Corréard, la famille Crepax, Louis-Paul Dessange, Alexandre Devaux, Marjorie Dugerdil Klein, Laurence Durieu, Christine Duvigneau, Julie Eggel, Caroline Eliacheff, Philippe Eveno, Olivier Fages, Katia Furter, Antoine de Galbert, Alan Gac, Anne-Marie Garcia, Angela Gavazzi, Melania Gazzotti, Dominique Gérard, Claude Ghez, Sophie Giraud, Luisa Maria Gräfin Esterhazy von Galantha, Philippe Glasson, Florence Grundeler, Jean-Claude Guiter, Sophie Guiter, Nathalie Guiot, Rolf et Seepi Imhof, Stéphane Jeoffroy, Alexandre Jaquinet, Laëtitia Jardin, Elisha et Nathanaël Karmitz, Marin Karmitz, Kiran Katara, Noëlig Le Roux, Zélie Le Roux, Marguerite Lhopital, Hervé Loevenbruck, Axelle de Lorgeril, Florence Loup, Basil et Sylvie Luginbühl, Julie Manau, Xavier Marchand, la famille Martin-Raget, Christine & Jean-David Mermod, Carène Monnet, Martin Mc Nulty, Françoise Nyssen, Moritz Pankok, Elsa Paradol, Gilles Pécout, Priscilla Pellecuer, Jean-Baptiste Petteni, Nicolas et Sylvie Raboud, Léa Ranger, Raphaël René-Bazin, Jean-Marc Rey, Denis Ribreau, Gilles Richter, Anaïs Ringenbach, Catherine Ringer, Ada Robinot, Florian Rodari, Mireille Romand, Saskia Rosa Hartmann, Alexandra Roussopoulos Richard et Maryse Roux-Artaud, Pavel Schmidt, Gaël Sillère, Yoan Sorin, Helena Staub, Laurent Strippoli, Karen Taieb, Romain Taieb, Otto et Maguy Teichert, Michel Thévoz, Solange Tissier, Carine Tissot, Arthur Toqué, Marie Vachin, Lucie Vadé, Paolo Valerio, Jules Vannier, Anthony Vessot, Lorenzo Vigano, Raphaël de Villers, Rina Zavagli.

Partners

Institutional partners

  • Arles
  • Consulat Général d'Italie à Marseille
  • Istituto Italiano di Cultura de Marseille
  • Le Département des Bouches-du-Rhône
  • Préfet de la Région PACA

Main partners

  • Fondation Guignard
  • Louis Vuitton Travel Book
  • Taittinger

Media partners

  • La Gazette Drouot
  • La Provence
  • Le Nouvel Obs
  • Télérama

Previous editions

Visit previous years' websites

Arles,
April 18 – May 17, 2026

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