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Key figures

Origin and history

The Musée d'art classique de Mougins (MACM), founded in 2011 by collector Christian Levett, was initially a space dedicated to ancient and modern art, organized on four thematic floors: an Egyptian crypt, a celebrity gallery, a floor dedicated to the Greek-Roman gods, and an ancient armory. The museum housed the largest private collection of Greco-Roman armor and weapons in the world, alongside works by artists such as Picasso, Renoir and Bourdelle. In 2011, he won the title of "Best New Museum of the Year".

In 2023, Christian Levett decided to radically transform the museum to devote it exclusively to women artists, renowned FAMM (Women artists of the Mugins Museum). Inaugurated in June 2024, he now exhibits works from the Levett Collection, including major artists such as Joan Mitchell, Louise Bourgeois, Tracey Emin and Jenny Saville. This shift reflects a complete editorial change, abandoning antiquities to highlight modern and contemporary women's creations.

The initial project, launched in 2008, had cost 8 million euros and aimed to share with the public the private collection of Levett, combining ancient art and works from the 19th to 21st centuries. The galleries were designed to create a dialogue between the periods, as evidenced by the juxtapositions of Roman busts with paintings by Matisse or sculptures by Moore. The old vocation of MACM, centered on classical heritage, contrasted with its new identity focused on women's creation.

The reconversion of the museum is part of a recent trend towards the upgrading of women artists, often underrepresented in permanent collections. The FAMM is now distinguished by its exclusive focus on these creators, while maintaining its anchor in Mougins, a historic town of the French Riviera linked to art since the 20th century (notably with Picasso).

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