Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Bonnard Museum, inaugurated on June 25, 2011 at the Cannet, is the first and only museum entirely dedicated to Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947), a major 19th and 20th century artist. This project originated in the privileged relationship between Bonnard and Le Cannet, where he bought the villa Le Bosquet in 1926 and lived there for more than twenty years. The city, a source of inspiration for its most accomplished works, wished to pay tribute to it by creating a museum space centered on its production, notably that made between 1922 and 1947, when the painter resided almost continuously there.

The museum is housed in the former Hôtel Saint-Vianney (1908), a rare example of Belle Époque architecture saved from demolition. His creation was impulsed in 1983 by Michèle Tabarot, then assistant to culture, who established ties with the artist's family. After years of preparation—including the acquisition of the building in 1998, an architectural competition in 2005, and the award of the Musée de France label in 2006—the museum opened its doors in 2011. His scientific project is based on a partnership with the museums of Orsay and Orangery, as well as the support of patrons such as the Meyer Foundation.

The collections, which focus on Bonnard's maturity, include landscapes of the Midi, still lifes, and intimate scenes such as La Salle dindre au Cannet (1932) or L-Amandier (circa 1930). Works of youth, including posters and decorative projects of the Nabi period, complete the ensemble to offer a complete panorama of his art. The museum also organizes temporary exhibitions, such as Misia, Queen of Paris (2012) or Un Fauve at Bonnard (2015), and has received more than 150,000 visitors in two years, imposing as a major cultural institution of the French Riviera.

The garden of the villa Le Bosquet, classified as a historical monument in 2007, and the landscapes of the Cannet have profoundly marked Bonnard, like Giverny for Monet or Nice for Matisse. These places, the sources of a unique light and palette, are at the heart of his late work. The museum, thanks to its rehabilitated architecture (890 m2 including an underground extension) and its pedagogical approach, highlights this dialogue between the artist and his territory. In 2015, he was awarded the ArchiCOTE Equipment Award for his exemplary rehabilitation.

Beyond its museum vocation, the Bonnard Museum is part of a dynamic of preserving artistic and architectural heritage. It bears witness to Le Cannet's attachment to its cultural history, while providing an unprecedented light on a painter whose work, between intimateness and chromatic explosion, marked modern art. Partnerships with national institutions and the network of patrons ensure the continuous enrichment of its collections, as evidenced by recent acquisitions (Cannet Landscape by Mistral Time, 2013) or donations (Amandier, 2014).

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