In the first half of the twentieth century, avantgarde artists in Europe began looking beyond the accepted canons of Western art in a search for new sources of inspiration. Primitive art, drawings by children, the art of the insane, automatism, and graffiti all opened up new avenues of experimentation. At the end of World War II, leading French artist Jean Dubuffet became interested in the works being produced by patients in psychiatric hospitals and by other social outcasts. In 1948, he founded the 'Compagnie de Art Brut' in order to extend and document the collections he had recently begun, and in 1976, after various adventures, the 'Collection de Art Brut' moved to its permanent home in Lausanne.This critically-acclaimed book traces the history of the concept of 'Art Brut', which is inseparable from the work and personality of the man who did the most for the appreciation and preservation of these remarkable works. The account is completed by biographical notes on the artists featured and an extensive bibliography. This revised edition contains up-to-date information about modern exponents of 'Art Brut' and about the collection itself, including new images. All the works reproduced, most from the collection created by Dubuffet, have retained their subversive freedom, which continues to fascinate and inspire artists and collectors today.