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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Annonciade Museum is housed in the former chapel of Notre-Dame de l'Annonciade, built around 1510 by the brotherhood of the White Penitents. Sold as a national good during the Revolution, it lost its bell tower in 1821 and became a marine construction workshop. In 1937, the upper part of the museum was designed to accommodate the Museon Tropelen, the precursor of the present museum.

In 1950, the industrialist and collector Georges Grammont (1808-1956) obtained the supply of the chapel by the city. He financed his transformation by architect Louis Süe to exhibit his collection of paintings. The museum was inaugurated on 7 August 1955 with 56 works, mainly pointillist, nabi and fawn painters who had worked in Saint-Tropez between 1890 and 1950.

Originally created in 1922 under the name Museon Tropelen, the museum pays tribute to Paul Signac, who discovered Saint-Tropez in 1892 and attracted artists such as Matisse, Braque or Derain. In 1961, a flight of 57 canvases was partially resolved in 1962, with the exception of a watercolour from Dunoyer de Segonzac, then conservative. The collections, enriched by donations, now illustrate the major artistic movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The chapel, disused after the Revolution, symbolizes the transition between religious and cultural heritage. Its redevelopment in 1950 by Süe marked the culmination of a project combining private patronage and municipal will to preserve the Tropezian artistic heritage.

The works exhibited, including those by Signac, Cross, Vuillard or Matisse, bear witness to the creative effervescence of Saint-Tropez, which became a home of the pictorial avant-garde thanks to the influence of Signac and his guests. The museum also preserves pieces by sculptors such as Maillol or Rouault, extending its field to the plastic arts.

In 1961, the spectacular flight of 57 paintings, including works by Derain, Marquet and Van Dongen, shaken the museum. Their partial restitution in 1962, following an anonymous letter, remains a significant episode in its history, highlighting the conservation and security issues of the collections.

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