Creation of the viscose plant 1927 (≈ 1927)
Start of industrial production in Grenoble.
1989
Plant closure
Plant closure 1989 (≈ 1989)
End of activity, origin of the museum project.
1er juillet 1992
Opening of the museum
Opening of the museum 1er juillet 1992 (≈ 1992)
Opening on the old industrial site.
2004
Become a departmental museum
Become a departmental museum 2004 (≈ 2004)
Transfer under departmental management.
mai 2012
Back to municipal management
Back to municipal management mai 2012 (≈ 2012)
Recaptured by the city of Echirolles.
1er mars 2021
Integration into TRACé
Integration into TRACé 1er mars 2021 (≈ 2021)
Grouping with other cultural facilities.
2022
Proposed demolition project
Proposed demolition project 2022 (≈ 2022)
Fusion with the Geo-Charles Museum.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Key figures
Comte Hilaire de Chardonnet - Artificial Silk Inventor
Called by objects from his workshop.
Origin and history
The Viscose Museum was founded by the closure in 1989 of the Grenobloise factory of the Viscose Society, which has been active since 1927. To preserve this industrial memory, an association of former employees, the viscosists, created the museum on the historic site, with the support of Cellatex and the Dauphinois museum. Inaugurated on 1 July 1992, it illustrates both the manufacturing process, the factory work and the life of the workers in the city.
In 2004, the museum became a departmental institution before returning to the management of the city of Echirolles in May 2012. Since March 2021, he has joined TRACé (Territory of Resources, Arts and Culture Échirolles), a structure that also includes the Géo-Charles Museum and the Graphic Design Centre. Her collections, composed of 634 objects including 184 exhibited, cover the invention of viscose by Count Hilaire of Chardonnet, the production machines, and the social history of the Cellatex factory.
The museum also organizes temporary exhibitions on the world of work in Isère. In 2022, the city of Échirolles announced a project to demolish the building to consolidate its collections with those of the Geo-Charles Museum, marking a possible evolution of its heritage vocation.
