Paris Saint-Germain Foundation launches a fundraising partnership with Underdogs

Paris Saint-Germain Foundation launches a fundraising partnership with Underdogs

The Parisian club’s Foundation is teaming up with the Underdogs cultural platform as part of a programme to finance its charity programmes that have been impacted by the pandemic.

The Paris Saint-Germain Foundation is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Since its creation, it has helped 250,000 children and carried out over 6,000 projects, but its financial resources have become strained due to the current health crisis and the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to compensate for the money that would have been raised at the annual Gala Dinner, the Paris Saint-Germain Foundation has set up a collaboration with some major names from the contemporary art world that will run over several years.

The PSG Foundation approached Underdogs, the Lisbon-based cultural platform created by Vhils, one of the stars of the urban art world, that works with artists connected with the new languages of urban-inspired graphic and visual culture, helping establish a close relationship between creators and the city.

“Our idea was to release a series of limited edition, numbered pieces of artwork, in collaboration with top contemporary artists, explains Fabien Allègre, Director of Brand Diversification at Paris Saint-Germain. I immediately thought of Underdogs and of Vhils, whose talent and reputation are universal, as well as his expertise in terms of distribution and commitment. What we really want to do is to reach new audiences, younger people, collectors, and to raise as much money as possible in order to finance the Foundation’s projects, through innovative initiatives such as this one.”

For a long time, but particularly since 2011 when Paris Saint-Germain was bought by QSI, partnerships and collaborations with international artists, creators, sculptors and musicians have been part of Paris Saint-Germain’s brand expression.

Pauline Foessel, Co-founder of Underdogs: “For the past 10 years, Underdogs has supported a generation of artists from Portugal and the world, giving opportunities to artists who started in urban spaces to grow and reach the recognition they deserve. It is a great honour for us to participate in this fundraising for the Paris Saint-German Foundation and to continue our mission of spreading urban inspired contemporary art and encouraging young adults to find their role in our societies.”

This project is based on a common model in the contemporary art world: drops. These involve releasing an original, limited edition, numbered work of art whose subject is Paris, on a specific day. What is unusual about it is the Underdogs’ support of the Paris Saint-Germain Foundation’s project and its flexibility.

Four exclusive pieces created by different artists will be released between December 2020 and June 2021. The first was dropped on 9th December, is an artist limited edition silkscreen print by Vhils.

Vhils quote: “I am very honoured to take part in this fundraising and to be able to contribute to the Foundation activities. In the face of the difficult times we are experiencing, it becomes increasingly urgent to reach out to those in need. Thus, the importance of projects like the Paris Saint-Germain Foundation and the unwavering work it develops with underprivileged children, young adults and communities. For this collaboration with the Paris Saint-Germain Foundation and Underdogs, I created an edition that represents our defiance, as humanity, to what we are facing at the moment and to the aftermath of it. The defiant woman’s gaze symbolises our capability to rise again, to stand up and fight the challenges ahead. This image was inspired by several impressions collected on my last trip to Paris earlier this year, by its streets and all the different things you can find while rambling around the city – images, typography, sculptures.”