Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Chambéry originated in the legacy of Abbé de Mellarède in 1783, which offered his personal collection to found the museum. This first contribution is complemented by royal gifts and private bequests, including those of local collectors such as Baron Hector Garriod, who gives in to nearly 250 works, including major pieces of the Italian Renaissance. The annexation of Savoy to France in 1860 accelerated the enrichment of collections thanks to state deposits and prestigious gifts, such as that of King Victor Emmanuel II of Piedmont-Sardaigne.

Installed since 1889 in the former grain hall, entirely enhanced by architect François Pelaz, the museum closes for major restructuring work before reopening in March 2012. His fame is based on his collection of Italian paintings, the second in France after the Louvre, with works from the Trecento in the 18th century, notably from the Daille diation in 1980. This diation incorporates the collection of primitive Sienese by the writer Paul Bourget, strengthening its influence in Florentine, Neapolitan and Bolonese schools.

The museum also preserves works by French artists (Géricault, Fragonard, Georges de La Tour) and Savoyards (Xavier de Maistre, Tonia Cariffa), as well as paintings by the Northern School, such as the Adoration of Mages attributed to Jan van Dornicke. Its building, a former covered market transformed into a museum-library, is distinguished by its zenithal window designed to illuminate collections. The artistic direction was marked by figures such as the painter Benoît Molin, who took the lead in 1850.

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