ĚUROFÅBŔIQUË

Le Signe, Centre national du graphisme, can be considered as a hub for dialogue and creation between a specific field of artistic production and the audience. It is a matter of seizing the experimental artistic character of the productions and the places where they appear, somewhere between industrial creation and the auto-production of hybrid objects,  that are the outcome of commissioned or self-initiated manufacture.

We are driven by the objectives of supporting creation and reaching out to audiences (public, students, pupils, remote, with special needs…), the aesthetic and social relevance of contemporary art on all and any scales.

Our activities of creation and dissemination all provide spaces for dialogue about what our relationship to contemporary forms is based on. Solo or group exhibitions, R&D, screening series, performances, meetings, audience accompaniment schemes, are all examples of how we, at le Signe, constantly seek innovative models for exhibition programs, dissemination and education. This research consists in redefining the encounter between the spectator and visual arts.

Our demand is fuelled by issues that upset the world in its complexity and diversity. Fortunately, we can draw on the rich collection of the Town of Chaumont, especially the Dutailly collection that is regularly exhibited.

Our exhibition program combines views of the international scene, the national scene as well as fostering creation on a given territory. Asserting le Signe in Chaumont as a venue of artistic creation closely linked to current artistic trends means implementing its activity by means of an annual exhibition, dissemination, transmission and education scheme.

This groundwork involves an autonomous, prospective programming that is highly reactive. The Ministery of Culture employs the term of “pioneering researcher” for art venues like le Signe.

Le Signe, as a young organization administrated by the Groupement d’Intérêt Public (GIP), constituted by the Town of Chaumont, the Region Grand Est and the French state and whose link with the preceding festivals reflects the history of graphic design in France, is thoughtfully led with regards to its position: from the assertation of its artistic stance and its readiness for an unwavering accompaniment of the development and outreach in the field visual arts , namely in graphic design.

Le Signe leads the Biennale internationale de design graphique, a major event on the international scene and places Chaumont in the ecosystem of the leading artistic and professional events such as New York, Shanghai, Glasgow, Breda, Luzern, Mexico.

Through its actions, le Signe achieved the recognition of Centre d’art Contemporain d’intérêt national (CACIN) in 2021. This testifies the support of the State to the institution and ensures the freedom of creation, artistic programming and the autonomy of its management.