Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Picasso Museum is housed in Hotel Salé, a baroque mansion in the Marais, built between 1656 and 1659 for Pierre Aubert de Fontenay, lord of Fontenay. The latter, responsible for perceiving the gabelle, entrusted the works to the architect Jean Boulier de Bourges. The hotel, known for its lavish carved decor, was quickly nicknamed "Hôtel Salé" with reference to the fortune of its owner. After the ruin of Aubert in 1663, the hotel experienced various uses: the Venice embassy, the school, and was even transformed into a Central School of Arts and Manufactures, profoundly changing its interior layout.

Acquired by the city of Paris in 1964, the Hotel Salé was listed as a historic monument in 1968. Between 1974 and 1984, it was restored to its original volumes. Picasso, who appreciated the old houses, would have been seduced by this place. In 1976 Roland Simounet was chosen to develop the museum, which was inaugurated in 1985. Interior decorative elements, such as chandeliers and benches, were created by Diego Giacometti. The museum now houses Picasso's largest collection of works in the world, covering all its creative periods.

The museum's collection was made up by successive dating of Picasso's heirs, notably in 1979 and 1990, as well as by donations from his personal collection, including works by masters he admired such as Cézanne, Matisse or Degas. In 1992, Picasso's archives, with 200,000 documents, were also given to the State. The museum was closed for renovation between 2011 and 2014, reopening with a triple surface and a journey enriched with more than 500 works exhibited.

During the works, part of the collections travelled around the world through travelling exhibitions, earning 31 million euros. These exhibitions, presented in prestigious museums such as the Hermitage in St. Petersburg or the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, made the international collection known. The museum was also marked by polemics, particularly about the copyright claimed by some of Picasso's successors, despite Jacqueline Picasso's waiver of these rights.

The Hotel Salé, before becoming a museum, housed illustrious tenants, such as the ambassador of Venice between 1668 and 1688, or the Duke of Villeroy, favorite of Louis XIV. In the 18th century, it was owned by noble families such as the Camus or the Thiroux de Chammeville, before being seized during the French Revolution. In the 19th century, he hosted various institutions, including a boarding house where Honoré de Balzac was raised in 1815, and the Central School of Arts and Manufacturing until 1884.

The architecture of the Hotel Salé is remarkable, with a main façade adorned with a pediment carved with the arms of Aubert, a body of houses doubled in depth, and a staircase of honour decorated by the brothers Marsy and Martin Desjardins. The hemicycle courtyard, lined with low wings, and the French garden complete this baroque ensemble. Ranked a historic monument, the hotel now combines architectural heritage and exceptional artistic collections, making the Picasso Museum a unique place in the heart of Paris.

Collection

À son décès, Picasso a laissé environ 40 000 oeuvres dans ses différentes propriétés. Les héritiers ont apporté, dans un premier temps, par la procédure de dation en paiement, 203 peintures, 158 sculptures, 16 papiers collés, 29 tableaux reliefs, 88 céramiques, 1500 dessins, 1600 gravures et des manuscrits.

La collection personnelle de Picasso, qu'il avait formée au cours de sa vie en rassemblant des oeuvres de ses amis (Braque, Matisse, Miró, Derain...), de maîtres qu'il admirait (Cézanne, Le Douanier Rousseau, Degas, Le Nain...), des oeuvres primitives, avait été donnée à l'État français en 1978 pour être présentée au musée du Louvre. Elle a naturellement rejoint le fonds du musée Picasso.

En 1990, après la mort de Jacqueline Roque en 1986, l'épouse de Picasso, le musée a reçu une nouvelle dation. 47 peintures, 2 sculptures, une quarantaine de dessins, des céramiques, des gravures, enrichissent et complètent ainsi la collection initiale.

Enfin, en 1992, les archives personnelles de Picasso ont été données à l'État. Avec leurs milliers de documents et de photographies, qui couvrent toute la vie de Picasso, elles contribuent à faire du musée Picasso le principal centre d'étude sur la vie et l'oeuvre de l'artiste.

Future

The Hotel Salé, completely restored, now houses the Picasso Museum, built by architect Roland Simounet, and inaugurated on 28 September 1985. It contains the world's richest collection of works and covers all its periods.

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