What Is the Art Brut Museum?

Art Brut, also known as “rough art,” is work created people who are unaffected art culture or even the desire to create art. Many collections aren’t discovered until after the owner has passed away. Prison inmates, mental patients, and poor or “ordinary” people have all contributed to Art Brut, with some producing hundreds or even thousands of works of art. The Collection de l’Art Brut in Lausanne, Switzerland, is the most well-known Art Brut museum, founded in 1948 artists Jean Dubuffet and Andre Breton, among others. Other small organizations dedicated to the preservation and display of Art Brut exist in the United States and Europe.

A book of such works published Dr. Hans Prinzhorn in 1922 inspired Jean Dubuffet to create his Art Brut museum. In addition, he coined the term “Art Brut,” which means “raw art” in French. Patients at Dr. Prizhorn’s asylum created the paintings in his book. Surrealist artists of the time were influenced greatly the book. Since the term was coined Jean Dubuffet, the Collection de l’Art Brut has sole authority to declare works as Art Brut.

Outsider art was intended to be the English equivalent of this artistic style when it was first coined. It has now become a term for any art created someone who has never received formal training. The Collection de l’Art Brut does not recognize many of these works as Art Brut.

Outsider art can be compared to folk art. However, because they are created with some artistic influence, these pieces are not typically classified as Art Brut. Graffiti is occasionally included in this category as well. Folk art is represented in a number of fine galleries.

Today, the Art Brut museum in Switzerland is a large institution where each work is accompanied a biography of the artist. The Art Brut museum frequently exhibits works from around the world in addition to its original collection. It is located at 11 Avenue des Bergières in Lausanne and is open to the public.

The Collection de l’Art Brut is the most well-known and original Art Brut museum, but it is frequently featured in other museums and galleries, along with other outsider art. Another museum dedicated to Art Brut in Switzerland is the Museum im Lagerhaus. This kind of art is on display at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. Outsider art pieces created people with developmental disabilities are on display at the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts in Canada.