Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon comes from the will of the 18th-century Lyon elites, which was formalized during the French Revolution. Created officially in 1801 and opened in 1803, it was first designed as a learning place for drawing artists of the silky Lyon industry, with a flower salon dedicated to floral motifs. The initial collections come from revolutionary seizures and government shipments, including 110 paintings between 1803 and 1811, making Lyon one of the first provincial museums.

Located in the former abbey of Saint-Pierre-les-Nonnais, the museum has long shared its premises with the École des beaux-arts. His first curator, François Artaud (1767-1838), structured the collections and created an antique cabinet including Egyptian pieces studied by Champollion. The museum was distinguished early by the acquisition of major works such as La La Lapidation de Saint Etienne de Rembrandt, the painter's first known canvas, and its opening to the avant-gardes with purchases such as Nave Nave Mahana de Gauguin in 1913.

In the 19th century, under the leadership of Édouard Aynard and the board of directors, the museum adopted an encyclopedic vocation, enriched by medieval sculptures, Islamic art objects, and impressionist paintings. The chapel and the garden welcomed sculptures, while the Egyptian collections, reinforced by the excavations of Adolphe Reinach, gained in importance. In 1895, the Louvre ceded nearly 400 Egyptian objects, later supplemented by pieces by Deir el-Medinh.

The 20th century marked a turning point with the transfer of Gallo-Roman collections to the Fourvière Museum in 1975 and the creation of a contemporary art section in 1984. A major renovation between 1989 and 1998, led by architects Dubois and Wilmotte, modernized the spaces and allowed the integration of the Jacqueline Delubac legacy in 1997, bringing works by Picasso, Monet, Matisse and Bacon. The museum, ranked among the most frequented in France, now combines historical heritage and cultural dynamism.

The Saint-Pierre Palace, which was listed as a historic monument between 1927 and 1938, preserves remarkable elements such as the 17th-century Baroque refectory, decorated with paintings by Louis Cretey, and the lantern room, a witness to the original religious architecture. The garden, a former Benedictine cloister, houses 19th century statues and an ancient fountain surmounted by an Apollo, symbol of the arts.

The collections, organized in five departments (Antiquities, Objects of Art, Graphic Arts, Paintings, Sculptures), cover 70 rooms on 14,800 m2. The medallist, second in France with 50,000 pieces, and the graphic arts firm, rich in 7,500 works on paper, complete this panorama. Temporary exhibitions, such as the one on Joseph Cornell in 2013, and recent acquisitions (Pushion, Soulages) testify to his contemporary vitality.

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