Did you know a fantastical little city built from scrap and odds and ends hides among the trees, just a stone’s throw from Paris? For Heritage Days 2026, on the weekend of September 19 and 20, curious visitors from Île-de-France can enjoy a grand, privileged-access weekend to historic gems, little-known buildings, and hidden treasures usually shut to the public. It’s a chance to leave the Parisian pavement behind and wander the trails of Seine-et-Marne, toward Achères-la-Forêt, where the village of art by Chomo raises its quirky mineral and metal silhouettes.
Nestled on the edge of the forest of Fontainebleau, this timeless place spans more than a hectare. Dubbed by its creator the “Village d'art préludien”, the site brings together three distinctive structures: the Church of the Poor, the Forest Refuge, and the Sanctuary of Noises. Here, there is no traditional cut stone: the buildings have been shaped over decades from salvage materials, sprayed concrete, dead wood, wire mesh and colored glass bottles that catch the sun’s rays.
The master builder of this inhabited labyrinth was named Roger Chomeaux, known as Chomo (1907–1999). A former student at the Paris Beaux-Arts, the artist chose to break decisively with the traditional art market in the early 1960s to withdraw into the countryside. His approach sits squarely within the outsider art movement, theorized by Jean Dubuffet, which groups self-taught, spontaneous creations free from cultural conformity or academic mimicry. Chomo also experimented with the « burnt sculpture » by burning leftover plastic or wood to bring forth tormented forms. Today, the Les Amis de Chomo association watches over this fragile heritage to preserve the works from the ravages of time and to pass on the memory of this total artistic adventure.
Below you'll find the detailed program of on-site tours and appointments planned for this weekend's special opening.
Self-guided Tour of Chomo's Préludien Art Village
Throughout the weekend
• Self-guided site tour with explanatory panels
• Welcome and information space
• Pop-up bookshop
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In 1960, Chomo decides to leave Paris for good and settles alone in Achères-la-Forêt. He names his forest corner the “Village d'Art Préludien.”
Ahead of his time ecologist, keeper of bees, he tended as many as twenty hives; he works with wood (his “charred woods”), stone, and plastics.
Turning away from bronze, terracotta, and marble, Chomo chooses “breathing” materials. Tin, wood, plastic, glass, and concrete become endless sources of discovery. The sculptor pursues his series of burnt-wood pieces. He also shapes meshes, painting them or inlaying them with molten plastic and assorted materials. He repurposes children's toys. He uses cellular concrete: “I sculpt it the way one composes a poem,” he tells visitors.
Chomo tackles architecture and stained glass art: he builds three wooden structures made of wire mesh and bottles, which house his prolific body of work. The first is called the “Sanctuary of Burnt Woods”; the second, the “Church of the Poor,” features a spectacular rose window crafted from colored bottles; the final one, the “Refuge,” is clad in car hood panels.
Participation conditions: Reduced rate for everyone: 3 euros for a self-guided visit - Special rate | No reservation required
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 10:30 AM to 7:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 10:30 AM to 7:00 PM
Exhibition Altagor X Chomo
This exhibition highlights the meeting and artistic dialogue between ALTAGOR and CHOMO, two singular creators bound by a friendship and a correspondence nourished by poetic and visual experimentation since the 1950s.
Presented in the Sanctuary of Bois-Brûlés, it also brings together Maguy Lovato’s compositions and Marc Vernier’s artist’s books, extending the artist’s creative universe.
Participation requirements: Village entry at a reduced rate - No reservation | Preferential rate
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 - 10:30 AM to 6:00 PM | Sunday, September 20, 2026 - 10:30 AM to 6:00 PM
Guided Tour of Chomo's Préludian Art Village
In 1960, Chomo decides to leave Paris for good and settles alone in Achères-la-Forêt. He dubs his little woodland corner the “Preludian Art Village.”
Ecologically minded avant la lettre and a beekeeper at heart, he keeps up to twenty hives; he works with wood (his “burned woods”), stone, and plastics.
Departing from bronze, terracotta, and marble, Chomo chooses “breathing” materials. Sheet metal, wood, plastic, glass, or concrete become endless fields of discovery. The sculptor continues his series of burned wood. He also shapes fences, painting them or inlaying them with molten plastic and various materials. He repurposes children's toys. He uses cellular concrete: “I sculpt it the way one writes a poem,” he tells his visitors.
Chomo then turns to architecture and stained-glass art: he constructs three buildings from wood, fencing and bottles, which will house his prolific body of work. The first is called the “Sanctuary of Burned Wood”; the second, the “Church of the Poor,” features a spectacular rose window made from colored bottles; the last, the “Refuge,” is clad in car hoods.
Guided tours will be led by the association’s mediators.
Conditions of participation: Reduced price for everyone: 5 euros for a guided tour — preferential rate
Hours: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 11:00–12:00, 15:00–16:00 | Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 11:00–12:00, 15:00–16:00
Follies Worth Defending
The Tarot Garden by Niki de Saint Phalle, Jean Dubuffet's Closerie Falbala, and Chomo's Village of Prelude Art: three extraordinary art sites that challenge the national heritage landscape
Roberta Trapani — Unconventional Heritages of France
Participation conditions: Village entry at a reduced rate — No reservation | Preferred pricing
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 4:00 PM to 4:45 PM
On the Rocamberlus Roads
Mapping, a fanzine and a film about environments of outsider art, the idiosyncratic and the popular.
Sonia Terhzaz — independent researcher
Screening: Laurent, Johnny and Emmaüs
Film by David Chouferbad & Sonia Terhzaz, 2026, DV camera: focusing on Laurent Délion’s environment of popular art
Participation conditions: Village entry at a reduced rate - preferential pricing | No reservation required
Times: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM
Quadriphone: The World Instrument
Lucio Orchestra presents a concert built around a single instrument, weaving through multiple string ranges, voice and sonic explorations
Followed by a post-performance discussion, drinks available on site
Participation requirements: Village entry at a reduced rate - preferential price | No reservation required
Schedule: Saturday, September 19, 2026 — 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
The Archaeology of a Visionary Village
Reconstructing Chomo’s Préludien Art Village, through surveys, drawings and archives
Louis Emauré — independent artist and researcher
Grégoire Gamichon — multimedia graphic designer
Participation requirements: Village entry at a reduced price - Special rate | No reservation
Times: Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 12:00 to 13:00
Pedophile at a Child’s Height
Introduction to the mediation booklet “On the Trail of the Secrets of Chomo Village”
Emeline Guiran — Friends of Chomo Association
Participation requirements: Village admission at a reduced rate - Special pricing | No reservation required
Schedule: Sunday, September 20, 2026 — 1:00 PM to 1:45 PM
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Dates and Opening Time
From September 19, 2026 to September 20, 2026
Location
Chomo's Prelude-to-Art Village
24 Rue de Paris-Forêt
77760 Acheres la Foret
Route planner
Official website
www.amisdechomo.com
