Musee Granet

Museum in Aix en Provence

Henri Pointier, who served as the curator of the Museum of Aix from 1892 to 1925, notably held a strong disdain for Paul Cézanne, famously stating that Cézanne’s works would only be displayed there “over my dead body.” Ironically, Pointier passed away in 1949, and that same year, the museum began actively acquiring works by Cézanne, embodying a literal instance of the painter’s posthumous revenge.

In 1949, the museum was renamed in honor of François-Marius Granet, a local painter and one of its most significant benefactors. Housed in a former building of the priory of Saint Jean-de-Malte, the Granet Museum today still shares a garden with the church. In 2009, it hosted an exhibition to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Cézanne’s death, marking a triumphant recognition of the artist it once shunned.

The museum’s collection includes notable paintings by Jean-Dominique Ingres, such as the large-scale “Jupiter and Thetis.” It also features a self-portrait by Rembrandt and works by artists like Van Dyck, Cézanne, Giacometti, and de Stael.

In June 2011, the Granet Museum showcased over 180 works from the Swiss collector Jean Planque in an exhibition set up by the Jean and Suzanne Planque Foundation. This extensive collection, which will be displayed at the museum for 15 years, includes pieces by Degas, Renoir, Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Bonnard, Klee, Giacometti, and Dubuffet. This special show is hosted in the annex of the Chapel of the White Penitents, further expanding the museum’s offerings and cementing its reputation as a key cultural institution.

The Musee Granet appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Aix en Provence!

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