The Centre d’art Le LAIT. Albi
A pioneering establishment since the 1980s through its participation in the creation of art centres in France, the Centre d’art Le LAIT, directed by Jackie-Ruth Meyer, is committed to the production of artwork and the support of artists. It works with both emerging and internationally-renowned artists, who are invited to produce new works and exhibitions related to the historical, geographical, architectural or socio-political context, etc. of the intervention sites, especially at the Moulins Albigeois (Albi Mills) main exhibition space, featuring industrial architecture and outstanding heritage, situated within the episcopal city of Albi, a UNESCO world heritage site.
Since the centre opened its doors, the following artists have been featured, among others: Daniel Buren, Claude Lévêque, Camille Henrot, ORLAN, Yayoi Kusama, Chen Zhen, Sarkis, Mario Merz, Saâdane Afif, Angel Vergara, Robert Filliou, Malachi Farrell, Pilar Albarracín, Marine Abramovic, Michel François and Kendell Geers.
The intimate dimension of public space and societal issues, including the relationship between art, science, economics and philosophy, are the main areas of artistic investigation, with a strong presence of installations. The past few years have also seen a significant increase in digital media.
In addition to its distribution and production missions, the Centre d’art Le LAIT has set up various programmes aimed at transferring knowledge and passion for art to different audiences: conferences, art and writing workshops, initiatives in schools and universities, site-specific activities in urban and rural areas, etc. The Centre also offers a selection of cross-disciplinary activities in which visual arts merge with dance, writing, music, cinema, etc. It operates on a territorial, local, national and international level, involving various public and private partnerships, reaching between 20,000 and 35,000 people each year.
The Centre d’art Le LAIT is supported by the Regional Office for Cultural Affairs of the French Ministry of Culture and Communication, the Midi-Pyrénées region, the Tarn department and the city of Albi.
It forms part of the DCA network (French Association for the Development of Art Centres), the IKT network (International Association of Curators of Contemporary Art), ETAC (Crossborder Contemporary Art Space), LMAC (Mediation Laboratory for Contemporary Art of the Midi-Pyrénées region), and the Air de Midi network (Regional association of art centres in the Midi-Pyrénées region).
