Wood, earth, metal, textiles, glass, and now stone: every two years, the Skills Academy invites some twenty professionals to develop prospective projects around a universal material, overseen by a leader in their field, who takes on the role of programme director. With each edition, craftspeople, engineers and designers enhance their knowledge of the chosen material, exploring possible routes for innovation. The programme fosters cross-disciplinary knowledge and collective intelligence. 

An eleven-month-long calendar is drawn up for the Academy participants, who are selected across all age groups. All of the participants apply to the Academy with the aim of honing and enriching their skills in a unique environment that facilitates dialogue and emulation. This singular moment in their careers enables them to explore the multiple dimensions of materials that are integral to their practice, in the company of specialists.

Over the course of a semester, the Academy participants share and enrich their knowledge through a series of morning lectures that bring together experts who are authorities in their respective fields. Open to the public (reservation required), these morning sessions can also be viewed on the Foundation’s YouTube channel. The Academy participants also attend a series of in situ master classes to broaden their horizons. Finally, they come together several months later for a workshop in which they look anew at their respective practices in light of the knowledge acquired over the course of the programme. 

The collective knowledge developed over the course of each edition of the Academy is extended through an encyclopedic publication on the chosen material. Co-published with Actes Sud as part of its “Savoir & Faire” collection, each edition is a richly illustrated compendium that offers a generous and transversal exploration of the given material.