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Picasso Museum in Antibes: works, visit

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  5. Picasso Museum in Antibes: works, visit

Pablo Picasso, an exceptional painter and artist, was in love with Provence and the French Riviera. He thus multiplied his stays in the region and resided there for many years. He painted many pictures there, but also tried his hand at ceramics in the town of Vallauris. Nestled in a former medieval castle, the Picasso Museum of Antibes continues to bear witness, even today, to this artist’s attachment to southeastern France.

Pablo Picasso and Antibes

In 1946, Picasso was offered the exceptional opportunity to set up his workshop in the heart of Château Grimaldi, the famous castle of Antibes Juan les Pins. Romuald Dor de la Souchère, curator of the museum which then occupied the premises, suggested that the artist use the rooms of the castle to give free rein to his creativity. Between mid-September and mid-November 1946, Pablo Picasso created numerous works within the castle walls, including Les Clés d’Antibes (The Keys of Antibes). When he decided to return to Paris, Picasso left in the castle 23 paintings and 44 drawings. This period strengthened the ties uniting the man to the city, who would return there regularly. In 1957, Picasso was elevated to the rank of “Honorary Citizen of Antibes”.

Works in the Picasso Museum

Donations and purchases, but also the dation in 1991 of Jacqueline Picasso, who settled debts through the transfer of works of art, have made it possible to bring together an impressive collection. Thus, the museum now has about 245 works by Pablo Picasso. Visitors can discover well-known works such as “La Joie de vivre“, “Satyr, Faun and Centaur with Trident“, “Still life with owl and three sea urchins“, “The Woman with the sea urchins” and “She-Goat“.

These works coexist with the Modern Art collection started in 1951 by Dor de la Souchère. During your free or guided visit, you can admire works by Fernand Léger, Nicolas de Staël, Kostia Terechkovitch, Paul Leuquet, Claude Raimbourg, Germaine Richier and Joan Miró. The Picasso Museum of Antibes is a cultural destination not to be missed in southeastern France, and more widely in France, and it attracts contemporary art lovers from all over the world.

An open-air museum

Perched on a 20-meter-high cliff, Château Grimaldi overlooks the bay and the old town, offering visitors a breathtaking panorama.

The castle’s terrace is home to sculptures by Germaine Richier. Other artists are represented there: among others, Joan Miró, Bernard Pagès, Anne and Patrick Poirier. These highly photogenic works are set against a backdrop of shades of blue, extending as far as the horizon where the azure of the sky merges with that of the Mediterranean Sea.

Château Grimaldi

A listed historical monument, Château Grimaldi is located on the very ancient historic site of the acropolis of Antipolis, an ancient Greek city. It was later occupied by the Romans, who built a castrum there, and then it became the residence of the bishops in the Middle Ages. It then became the property of the Grimaldi family, which still reigns over the Principality of Monaco. The castle was bought in 1925 by the commune of Antibes to be transformed into a museum.

In 1966, Château Grimaldi definitively put the spotlight on Pablo Picasso by becoming the Picasso Museum. The building benefited from an ambitious restoration campaign between 2006 and 2008, which gave it back all its former glory.

Practical information

  • Visiting time: about 1 hour
  • Opening days: the museum is open all year round, except on January 1st, May 1st, November 1st and December 25th. The museum is closed on Mondays.
  • Schedule: from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and then from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (all day long from mid-June to mid-September)
  • Address: Promenade Amiral de Grasse, 06600 Antibes
  • Access: the museum is located in the heart of the historic center of the city of Antibes, at south of Port Vauban
  • Accessibility: possibility of lending wheelchairs, museum adapted to people with visual and hearing disabilities.
  • Website: https://www.antibesjuanlespins.com/

Museums in the Alpes-Maritimes department

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