Our patrons
The Centre’s patrons (foundations, institutions, public and private companies) offer financial support or support in kind, to the Public Interest Group Centre de recherche du château de Versailles. This support can be ongoing, linked to the general functioning of the Centre, or one-off, relating to specific projects.
In 2025, the Fondation La Poste is supporting the scientific project “Letters of Marie-Antoinette” (LMA) which aims to make an inventory of the active correspondence of Marie-Antoinette, and make it accessible in a digital version. The letters are kept in public collections in France and abroad, as well as in private collections. Some have been published, others remain unpublished.
In late 2024, the KCG chose to support the database “Prosocour” by becoming its exclusive patron, thus enabling its development and influence, including through research on French craftsmen working for the crown.
Founded by Dr Adrian Cheng in 2018, the KCG is a registered charity based in Hong Kong. KCG whose aim is to conserve and rejuvenate fast-disappearing Chinese crafts whilst undertaking both national and international cultural projects. Its mission is to ensure that Chinese culture and aesthetics adapt to the contemporary world by promoting research, education and interdisciplinary collaboration around traditional Chinese artistic and cultural pursuits.
Dr Adrian Cheng, , cultural entrepreneur and founder of the K11 Art Foundation and of Culture for Tomorrow, created the KCG to promote the preservation and dissemination of Chinese culture. By focusing on cultural creativity, social innovation and sustainable practices, the KCG aims to Create Shared Value (CSV) for society, by positively impacting local communities and educating the next generation of craftsmen and of guardians of cultural heritage.
Guerlain is one of the oldest French perfume houses. It was created in the rue de Rivoli in Paris in 1828 by Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain, whose motto was: “Glory is ephemeral, only distinction lasts.” For over one hundred and fifty years it remained the property of the Guerlain family. Since it was bought in 1994, Guerlain has become a brand of the Parfums et Cosmétiques branch of the LVMH group.
Guerlain is a scientific partner of the CRCV as part of a collaboration on the perfumers of the court and in financing the thesis of Alice Camus “The privileged perfumers, suppliers of the court of Versailles (17th-18th centuries)” (CIFRE contract, 2018-2021), who is welcomed into the CRCV.
A graduate of the ISIPCA perfumery school of Versailles, Francis Kurkdjian started his career by creating Le Mâle for Jean-Paul Gaultier, in 1995. Since then he has created many perfumes for internationally famous houses such as Dior, Yves Saint-Laurent, Guerlain, Lancôme, Lanvin, Nina Ricci, Kenzo, Giorgio Armani, Christian Lacroix, Burberry, etc. In 2001, he set up his workshop for bespoke perfume, and that same year was awarded the François Coty prize in recognition of his life’s work. In 2009, along with his associate Marc Chaya, he co-founded his own perfume house, Maison Francis Kurkdjian.
Passionate, determined and devoted to perfumery for thirty years, Francis Kurkdjian always sought to shake up the industry, to release it from its bottle, to unlock doors and take it into new areas. It was in this spirit that he produced a number of olfactory installations, particularly at the Palace of Versailles. Thus, in 2006, he enhanced the pool in the Orangerie with an orange blossom fragrance, shot into the air by the pool’s fountain and diffused all across the park. In 2008, in the bosquet of the Ballroom, he presented an installation of six hundred perfumed candles.
Passionate about the history of perfumery, Francis Kurkdjian is particularly interested in its development under the Ancien Régime, a crucial period in the development of the profession of perfumer. He therefore approached the Centre de recherche du château de Versailles and financed the research project “Being a Perfumer at Versailles, from Louis XIV to Louis XVI” in 2017.
Founded in 1981, Paris College of Art (PCA) is a private university in Paris, France. The university is a US degree granting institution of higher learning and is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). PCA’s mission is to provide the highest standard of art and design education, taught within an American pedagogical paradigm, while being influenced and informed by French and European environment. The international faculty is comprised of 100 leaders in the art, design, and business industries in Europe and courses are taught in English. PCA offers an interdisciplinary education for 300 full-time students coming from 50 different countries, and awards Bachelor’s degrees in: Accessories Design; Art History, Theory & Criticism; Communication Design; Design Management; Fashion Design; Film / Video; Fine Arts; Illustration; Industrial Design; Interior Design; and Photography. The university also offers study abroad, certificate, summer, and university preparation programs.
Paris College of Art globaly supported the activities of the Research Centre from 2011 to 2013.
The French Heritage Society supported the activities of the Research Centre from the international research seminar (years 2011 and 2012)
