Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Matisse Museum of the Cateau-Cambrésis was born from the initiative of Henri Matisse himself in 1952, after a meeting with local notables wishing to create a space dedicated to his work. The painter, from the city, offered 82 works and supervised their disposition in the large living room of the town hall. Inaugurated in his absence for reasons of health, he became the only museum founded by Matisse during his lifetime, although he had never seen him.

In 1956, Auguste Herbin, another native artist from the region, enriched the collections with 24 geometric and colourful works. The museum was transferred in 1982 to the Fenelon Palace, an 18th-century building that served as a residence for the archbishops of Cambrai, then as barracks, spinning and school. This building, registered as a historic monument in 1944, was renovated to accommodate the growing collections, including major donations such as that of the Tériade family in 2008.

The Fénelon Palace, rebuilt by Théodore Brongniart and marked by a neoclassical portal, symbolizes local history since the Middle Ages. After work of extension in 2022-2024, the museum reaches 5,000 m2, with a rethought course. Today he exhibits 783 works by Matisse, 92 by Herbin and 590 by the Tériade collection, covering paintings, sculptures and books illustrated by 20th century masters such as Picasso or Chagall.

Labelled "Musée de France" since 2003, he also celebrates temporary exhibitions, like Henri Matisse, how I made my books (2024-2025). The site, between courtyard and garden, combines architectural heritage and modernity, embodying the vision of a living museum, anchored in its territory and open to artistic avant-gardes.

External links