Located in a former ballroom from the roaring twenties, LE BAL is an independent space for exhibitions, publishing, reflection, and education, dedicated to contemporary image in all its forms: photography, video, cinema, and new media. Created in 2010 by Raymond Depardon and Diane Dufour with the support of the city of Paris, LE BAL is a non-profit organization. In 2018, Christine Vidal was appointed co-director of LE BAL.

Its educational center, La Fabrique du Regard, has been working deeply since 2008 to educate young people through and about images. In 15 years, 30,000 young people have been trained, along with 1,600 teachers, 650 artists, and members of the educational and cultural community in 275 neighborhoods, from elementary to high school, in schools or within social structures. The goal is to enable young people to think about the world through images, to train active viewers concerned about the profound changes affecting our societies.

LE BAL has a bookstore area, managed by the BAL Books team, specifically dedicated to photography, with over 2,000 references related to images and young creation, including self-published books, rare finds, fanzines, limited editions, and a selection of publications from publishing houses worldwide.

LE BAL also features a dining area, LE BAL Café, and a terrace overlooking a charming pedestrian alley and the Square des Deux Nèthes, as peaceful as it is discreet, where visitors can relax according to the seasons. Inside, the café comes to life with the rhythm of LE BAL's programming and offers a stopover before or after visiting an exhibition or a BAL LAB event.