From 2 to 5 March 2026, the Val d'Arly is hosting the 3rd edition of its Street Art Festival, with forty artists, four village resorts, live frescoes and night-time shows. Urban culture takes to the skies. Nearly 3,000 visitors are expected.
At first glance, nothing predestined these Savoyard villages to become a breeding ground for contemporary graffiti artists and visual artists. And yet... For four days, Crest-Voland / Cohennoz, La Giettaz en Aravis, Flumet / Saint-Nicolas-la-Chapelle and Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe will see their facades, cable cars and even their ski runs transformed into open-air studios.
«Our region is very authentic, with a huge amount of goodwill. We communicate a lot about this DNA. But once a year, with this festival, we break the codes. We're attracting a completely different kind of light, one that has never been seen before in the mountains.» explains in Le Petit Montagnard Stanislas Tochitch, Director of the Val d'Arly Tourist Office, co-organiser of the event with the Papajosette gallery.
With well-known figures from the street art scene
The first meeting of its kind in a French ski resort, The festival embraces this discrepancy. The artists, accustomed to working on industrial wastelands and urban walls, are working here in front of snow-capped peaks. The specifications are simple.
Evoke the mountains, each in their own way. Ice, the water cycle, silhouettes contemplating the ridges, abstractions inspired by the relief... no theme imposed, but an obligation to interpret.
Among the forty or so artists invited to take part are well-known figures on the street art scene such as SARO, Rom Art Crime, CRBZ, Ezea and Pikanoa, as well as new talent and local artists. «We try to renew about a third of the participants each year, while keeping the headliners. It's important for the balance».» explains the director.
Eight new locations have been selected to host permanent works. The eventual aim is to create a veritable artistic trail through the region, with around ten new frescoes added each year. Alongside these lasting creations, the festival also leaves room for the ephemeral: snow interventions, temporary installations and live performances.
torchlight processions and fireworks every evening
Each resort is hosting its own special event. The opening on 2 March at Crest-Voland / Cohennoz will set the tone with a vernissage and entertainment on the Logère gondola. On March 3, La Giettaz will be staging a spectacular show combining mountain biking and freestyle skiing with Winter X Sports Shows.
The following day, in Flumet, four artists will be painting live on giant three-metre-high inflatable letters, before a laser show projected onto a building. The event closes at Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe on 5 March with a ski show and concert. Every evening, torch-lit descents and fireworks will punctuate the festivities.
The festival attracts fans from far beyond the Massif. «We see visitors from Lausanne, Geneva and Chambéry. The artists have their fans, their communities. Some follow them from town to town.» observes Stanislas Tochitch. The event isn't the biggest in the field, but it does have a strong identity: bringing together urban art and Alpine landscapes.
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For children, digital graffiti, virtual reality and mini camel customisation workshops complete the programme. Between exhibitions, concerts, sports demonstrations and meetings, the Val d'Arly is once again preparing to paint the mountain in a different light.