Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Orangery Museum occupies a building built in 1852 by architects Firmin Bourgeois and Louis Visconti to house the orange trees of the Tuileries Garden during the winter. Its south facade, glazed to capture light, contrasts with a blind north facade protecting winds. Originally used as a greenhouse, in 1865 the site welcomed the sculptor Carpeaux to create the bust of the Imperial Prince. Between 1890 and 1912, he hosted the annual exhibition of hunting painters, linked to the Central Canine Society.

In 1921, the Orangerie was assigned to Fine Arts and chosen by Claude Monet, with the support of Georges Clemenceau, to exhibit his cycle of Nympheas (1927). The eight panels, arranged in two oval rooms, are inaugurated after the painter's death. From 1930 to 1933, the museum organized temporary exhibitions (impressionists, Rubens) before being attached to the Louvre. During the occupation, Arno Breker, an official sculptor of the Third Reich, exhibited there in 1942 in a context of Nazi propaganda.

In 1959 and 1963, the State acquired the Walter-Guillaume collection (146 paintings, including Renoir, Cézanne, Picasso), given under the condition of usufruct by Domenica Walter, widow of merchant Paul Guillaume. The museum was renovated between 1960 and 1965 to accommodate it, and from 2000 to 2006 to restore the natural lighting of the Nympheas and create underground spaces. Since 2010, it has been attached to the Orsay Museum under the official name of the Orsay Museum and the Orangery Museum – Valéry Giscard d'Estaing.

Collection

Rez de chaussée haut
Salles 1 et 2 : Les Nymphéas (Monet)
Rez de chaussée bas
Salle de Renoir et Cézanne I
Salle de Renoir et Cézanne II
Salle de Rousseau et Modigliani
Salle de Marie Laurencin
Salle de Matisse, Derain et Picasso I
Salle de Matisse, Derain et Picasso II
Salle de Derain
Salle d'Utrillo et Soutine

External links