Site

It was founded in 1821 and originally housed in the Maison Carrée

Maison Carrée

The Maison Carrée is an ancient building in Nîmes, southern France; it is one of the best preserved temples to be found anywhere in the territory of the former Roman Empire.- History :...

. Since 1907 it has been housed in a building designed by the architect Max Raphel in Square de la Mandragore on rue de la Cité Foulc. The Maison Carrée soon became too small and an architectural competition was organised in 1902 for a new building. This was won by Max Raphel and work began in 1903, being completed in 1907. It was renovated by the architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte

Jean-Michel Wilmotte

-Biography:Born in Soissons in 1948, Jean-Michel Wilmotte studied interior design at the Camondo school of interior design in Paris. Just two years after graduating, he founded his own agency in Paris in 1975...

 in 1987

Collections

The original collection was gathered from private collections in 1824 and was mainly made up of Roman antiquities, old master paintings and modern paintings. It was later enriched by legacies such as those of Robert Gower in 1869 and of Charles Tur in 1948 and gifts by professional and amateur artists. The collection now includes 3,600 works. In a lower 3-room gallery are Italian paintings by Jacopo Bassano

Jacopo Bassano

Jacopo Bassano , known also as Jacopo dal Ponte, was an Italian painter who was born and died in Bassano del Grappa near Venice, from which he adopted the name.- Life :...

 (1515-1592), Lelio Orsi

Lelio Orsi

Lelio Orsi was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Reggio Emilia school. He was born and died in Novellara, and much of his work was completed in Reggio. He appears to have studied under such as Giovanni Giarola, a pupil of Antonio da Correggio...

 (1511-1587) and Andrea della Robbia

Andrea della Robbia

Andrea della Robbia was an Italian Renaissance sculptor, especially in ceramics. He was the son of Marco della Robbia. Andrea della Robbia's uncle, Luca della Robbia, popularized the use of glazed terra-cotta for sculpture...

 (1435-1525) among others. In the seven rooms of the upper gallery are Flemish and Dutch paintings of the 16th and 17th centuries (Rubens

Rubens

Rubens is often used to refer to Peter Paul Rubens , the Flemish artist.Rubens may also refer to:- People :Family name* Paul Rubens Rubens is often used to refer to Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640), the Flemish artist.Rubens may also refer to:- People :Family name* Paul Rubens (composer) Rubens is...

, Carel Fabritius

Carel Fabritius

Carel Fabritius was a Dutch painter and one of Rembrandt's most gifted pupils.-Biography:Fabritius was born in Beemster, the ten-year old polder, as the son of a schoolteacher. Initially he worked as a carpenter . In the early 1640s he studied at Rembrandt's studio in Amsterdam, along with his...

, Pieter van Aelst

Pieter van Aelst

Pieter van Aelst or Pieter Coecke van Aelst was a Flemish painter. He studied under Bernaert van Orley and later lived in Italy before entering the Antwerp Guild of painters in 1527. In 1533, he travelled to Constantinople for one year in a failed attempt to establish business connections for...

 (1502-1550), Leonaert Bramer

Leonaert Bramer

Leonaert/Leonard Bramer alias Nestelghat was a Dutch painter, best known for probably being one of the teachers of Johannes Vermeer, although there is no similarity between their work. Bramer's dark and exotic style is unlike Vermeer's style...

) and French paintings by Renaud Levieux, Jean-François de Troy, Pierre Subleyras

Pierre Subleyras

Pierre Subleyras was a French painter, active during the late-Baroque and early-Neoclassic period, mainly in Italy....

 and Paul Delaroche's Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....

 with the corpse of Charles I

Charles I of England

Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

. They also house paintings by the Nîmes-born artists Charles-Joseph Natoire

Charles-Joseph Natoire

Charles-Joseph Natoire was a French painter in the Rococo manner, a pupil of François Lemoyne and director of the French Academy in Rome, 1751-1775...

 and Xavier Sigalon

Xavier Sigalon

Xavier Sigalon , French painter, born at Uzès towards the close of 1787, was one of the few leaders of the romantic movement who cared for treatment of form rather than of colour.-Biography:...

.

External links

• Musée des Beaux-Arts on the site of the ville de Nîmes