The Cité internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'image

An institution born of passion

The Cité internationale de la bande dessinée et de l'image — known by the acronym CIBDI — is the logical outcome of fifty years of Angoulême's commitment to comics. Gradually founded in the wake of the International Festival, it now occupies several renovated buildings on the banks of the Charente river, in the Saint-Cybard district, a few hundred metres from the upper town. Its architecture blends old and contemporary: the chais (former wine warehouses) have been carefully converted to house the collections and welcome the public, while modern extensions complete the ensemble.

The museum: the history of the ninth art

The CIBDI museum is the centrepiece of the complex. Its permanent route retraces the history of comics from its origins — the earliest sequential images of the 19th century — through to contemporary creation. The original collections include original boards, sketches, mock-ups and archival documents that make it possible to chart the evolution of techniques and styles over the decades. Authors such as Hergé, Moebius, Franquin, Tardi, Bilal and Christophe Blain are represented in the holdings.

Alongside the permanent route, the museum offers major temporary exhibitions, often linked to publishing news or the festival programme. These exhibitions regularly receive loans from foreign institutions and contribute to the CIBDI's international reach. The museum also runs guided tours, workshops for schools and author meetings.

The public reference library

The CIBDI houses one of the world's most significant specialist libraries devoted to comics. The holdings exceed 100,000 items — albums, magazines, fanzines, critical works, exhibition catalogues — covering all traditions of world comics: Franco-Belgian, American, Japanese, Korean, African and Latin American. The library is open to the public and serves as a reference tool for researchers, authors, students from art schools and comics enthusiasts from around the world. Its specialist staff responds to research requests and guides visitors through the collections.

The Vaisseau Mœbius

Named in homage to the cartoonist Jean Giraud, known as Moebius — one of the greatest comics artists of the 20th century, whose science-fiction universes have influenced generations of creators —, the Vaisseau Mœbius is the CIBDI's contemporary building, located partly on the other side of the Charente. This space dedicated to contemporary art exhibitions linked to the image hosts invited artists, installations and special commissions. Its spectacular architecture makes it one of the visual landmarks of the Saint-Cybard district.

The CIBDI cinema

Completing the facilities, the CIBDI has a cinema devoted to animated film, comics adaptations and auteur cinema linked to the image. Thematic cycles are regularly organised there, in connection with the exhibitions and festival programme. The Cité cinema takes part in the local cultural fabric by offering a programme that complements the city's commercial cinemas.

The CIBDI in Angoulême's ecosystem

The CIBDI is not an isolated institution: it is the central node of an ecosystem that includes the Magelis studios, the EESI, the EMCA and the city's other museums. Synergies exist with the network of specialist bookshops in the town centre and with the painted walls that make Angoulême an open-air comics gallery. The capital of comics finds in the CIBDI its most emblematic institution — the one that gives permanent form to the city's cultural vocation beyond its event-driven gatherings.