Business as (Un)usual: SKEMA Business School brings street art to its walls

SKEMA Business School is showcasing almost 100 urban artworks at its Grand Paris campus this October to challenge traditional academic norms and initiate a unique dialogue between art, higher education, and the economy.

In the Agora space of SKEMA’s Grand Paris campus, the colourful silhouettes of a monumental fresco catch the eye. The artist behind it, muralist Bault, a rising figure in French street art, brings to life a vibrant and symbolic world at the heart of an institution dedicated to training future business leaders. The contrast is striking and intentional.

Titled “Business as (un)usual”, this exhibition marks the launch of “Art on Campus”, a groundbreaking cultural initiative by SKEMA. The idea? To make contemporary art, and more specifically urban art, a catalyst for ponderation on the transformations of our world.

“Art and business share this ability to anticipate, decipher and influence the world,” explains Alice Guilhon, Dean and Executive President of SKEMA. “This exhibition is far more than a cultural event: it’s an invitation to think differently,” she adds.

 

An artistic immersion at the heart of the school

Starting now and throughout the year, about a hundred artworks will form a permanent presence across corridors, communal areas, and even classrooms. This resolutely immersive approach aims to place students at the centre of a living, creative, and reflective ecosystem.

For Nicolas Laugero Lasserre, collector, exhibition curator, and street art specialist, the project represents “a recognition of the central role of urban art in public debate” and “a way to bring students closer to a free, living culture that resonates with their time”.

 

A dialogue between disciplines

The exhibition illustrates that learning happens everywhere: on walls, in colours, and in the turn of a gaze. It opens new horizons where art questions our certainties, colours awaken ideas, and free forms extend debates about freedom of expression, social responsibility, geopolitics, and design as a tool for transformation.

At SKEMA, the school becomes a gallery, and the gallery becomes a school.

From this confluence of business and art emerges a conviction: training tomorrow’s leaders also means nurturing their creativity, open-mindedness, and boldness.

“With our UNVEIL strategic plan, SKEMA is affirming its ambition to reinvent learning models and open the school to new dialogues between knowledge, cultures, and disciplines. This exhibition perfectly embodies that spirit: daring to break down barriers, to innovate, and to inspire,” emphasises Alice Guilhon.

“Business as (un)usual” thus stands as a visual and intellectual manifesto reminding us that creativity thrives where we least expect it: right at the heart of the business world.

#StreetDays: an artistic and educational thread

Throughout the 2025–2026 academic year, #StreetDays will punctuate school life with a rich and open programme: guided tours, masterclasses led by Nicolas Laugero Lasserre, thought-provoking talks on meaning, engagement, culture, and impact, as well as artist interventions that will enrich the student experience across all campuses.

The goal: to make urban art converse with major societal challenges and encourage students to rethink their role in a world in transition.

The school invites all its communities – students, alumni, and partners – to (re)discover SKEMA in a new light, to the rhythm of street art.