Artefacts

Artefacts is a cooperative society (Coop or in french Scop - société coopérative et participative), an association of persons who voluntarily cooperate for their mutual, social, economic, and cultural benefit.
Artefacts is a cooperative owned and self-managed by its workers (they hold the power of decision) and as such, it welcomes and supports entrepreneurs whose projects fall under the sector of creative industries (l'economie créative) - artists, artisans, professionals in digital data. The staff of the cooperative has developed expertise in various complementary fields: instructional design (l'ingénierie pédagogique), critical analysis of the uses of digital data.
Under the management of Artefacts, entrepreneurs benefit from methodological support, training, financial and technical resources and working spaces. Once their project develops, they can choose to become an employee within the cooperative. At this stage, they generate regular revenues for themselves and Artefacts bears the accounting and administration of the economic activities of the contractor. After few months they take shares in the cooperative and become its members.
Artefacts develops numerous projects addressed to the young people, whether in the context of leisure or professional integration. While developing youth activities, the cooperative reaches for artistic and cultural actions.
The headquarters of the cooperative are located in Orléans. There is also a facility in Tours and employees in Nantes and Paris. All together, Artefacts has various working spaces (dance stage, theatre, hackerspace, training room etc.) In Orléans, the cooperative is located at 108 Maison Bourgogne, cultural centre that hosts 40 various associations in 5000 m2. Moreover, Artefacts has a working area of 200 m2 situated in the heart of a neighbourhood of Orléans-la-Source, where develops a laboratory on the theme of citizen participation. As for today, Artefacts consists of around sixty employees: artists, various professionals of digital data and cultural entrepreneurs, 4 administrative staff and 24 cooperative members. Artefacts organises many events: shows, temporary boutiques, forums, etc.
The cooperative works with various partners throughout the region Centre and France. The national network of Artefacts consists of associations, small businesses (creative industry), large groups, or research laboratories and public communities. These collaborations allow to produce effects at different scales and to reach a wide range of people.
Artefacts is also involved in the network of Fab Labs. The cooperative set up a Fab Lab in a sensitive urban zone. In this space young people are invited to develop their ideas that truly respond to the real needs of the local populations.