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Origin and history

The United States Foundation is an emblematic residence of the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris (CiuP), located in the 14th arrondissement, opposite the Parc Montsouris. Inaugurated in 1930, it was designed by architect Pierre Leprince-Ringuet in an Art Deco style, with frescoes signed by Robert La Montagne Saint-Hubert, restored between 1994 and 2011. His Grand Salon, classified as a historical monument in 2009, illustrates the alliance between artistic heritage and educational vocation.

The residence was founded thanks to the initiative of the American surgeon Homer Gage and his wife Mabel, with the support of Ambassador Walter E. Edge and President Gaston Doumergue. From its opening on April 28, 1930, it welcomed students and artists, perpetuating a Franco-American cultural exchange. Today, its 267 rooms, workshops and studios feature open-air programming, combining concerts, exhibitions and conferences.

Among its features, the Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship, created in the 1930s, supports American students in arts, music and psychiatry annually. The frescoes of the Grand Salon, painted in 1930 by Saint-Hubert and his students, are unique in Paris: they represent an intact testimony of monumental art deco, restored thanks to patrons such as the Fondation Florence J. Gould. Their style, marked by rich colours, makes it a jewel of Parisian heritage.

Ranked among the first buildings of the International City, the United States Foundation symbolizes the legacy of transatlantic intellectual exchanges. Its cultural centre and its spaces dedicated to the arts make it a living place, where history and modernity dialogue through events accessible to all.

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