"Art Brut," or "outsider art," consists of works produced by people who for various reasons have not been culturally indoctrinated or socially conditioned. There are all kinds of dwellers on the fringes of society. Working outside the fine art "system" (schools, galleries, museums, etc.), these people have produced from the depths of their own personalities, and for themselves and no one else, works of outstanding originality in concept, subject and techniques. They are works which owe nothing to a tradition or fashion.

The naive or primitive painters remain with the mainstream of painting proper, even if they fail ingeniously while practicing its style. However, they accept its subjects, techniques and its values, because they hope for recognition.

"Art Brut" artists, on the other hand, make up their own techniques, often with new means and materials, and they create their works for their own use, as a kind of private theater. They choose subjects which are often enigmatic, while not caring about the positive opinion of others, even keeping their work secret.

Michel Thevoz

Curator collection de l'Art Brut in Lausanne