Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The René Dovois Museum is housed in the Prieuré de Charolles (Saône-et-Loire), a historic building converted to exhibit the work of sculptor René Dovois, born and dead in this city (1888-1962). The artist, trained in Argentina and France, specialized in wood carving before diversifying his materials. His creations, marked by a renovated figurative style, were awarded at the Salons des Artistes Français between 1925 and 1961.

In 1963, the widow of Doats and her son Felix donated her collections to the city of Charolles. Originally exhibited in his workshop (34 rue René Dovoine), the works were transferred in 2006 to the Espace Dovoine, located at the Musée du Prieuré. This place preserves original models, such as the memorials of the Resistance (1947) and the Deportees (1955), as well as religious and secular pieces of wood, stone or marble.

Doats was an active member of the Salon des Artistes Français, winning awards such as the Gold Medal (1954) and the Taylor Prize (1956). His work Gaminerie (1925), a boy stung on a turtle, marked his remarkable entry into the artistic milieu. Later, he adopted the technique of the unfinished, illustrated by the Monument of the Deportees of Paray-le-Monial, where the bodies emerge half of the stone.

The museum also houses family archives, catalogues written by his widow and son, and original plasters such as Diane wakes up (1939). The premises, labeled Musée de France, are part of a local heritage linked to sacred and commemorative art. The Dovoine workshop, still visible at 34 René Dovoine Street, opens during the Journées du Patrimoine.

Dovoine's recurring themes include women (virges, mothers, goddesses), childhood (Pascal, 1949), and historical memory (Monument of the Resistance, 1947). Its preferred materials evolved from local walnut to Carrara marble, through the stone of Lens. The museum continues its heritage through permanent exhibitions and cultural events.

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