Early Modern · Architecture

Musée Marc-Chagall

Nice

The Musée national du message biblique Marc-Chagall is a French national museum in Nice, in the Alpes-Maritimes department. Founded during the artist’s lifetime with support from Culture Minister André Malraux, it opened in 1973. The museum is dedicated to the biblical works of painter Marc Chagall and houses seventeen paintings from the Message biblique cycle, which were gifted by Chagall to the French state in 1966.

The seventeen works illustrate Genesis, Exodus, and the Song of Songs from the Old Testament. The cycle includes twelve paintings on Genesis and Exodus, presented in the museum’s large hall, and five paintings recalling the Song of Songs, displayed in a hexagonal side room. Chagall had originally begun work on Message biblique in the early 1950s with the idea of reviving the Chapelles du Calvaire in Vence, but later decided not to install the works in a religious building. He also gave detailed instructions for the museum’s garden and determined the placement of each work. Extensive renovations were carried out in 2006–2007, and a reception building called the Rotunda was added in the garden.

Map showing the location of Musée Marc-Chagall in Nice
Location of Musée Marc-Chagall in Nice

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Foundation and Collection

The Musee national du message biblique Marc-Chagall is a French national museum in Nice, in the Alpes-Maritimes department. It was founded during the lifetime of Marc Chagall with support from Culture Minister Andre Malraux and opened in 1973. The museum is dedicated to the biblical works of the painter Marc Chagall and houses seventeen paintings from the Message biblique cycle. These works were gifted by Chagall to the French state in 1966 and illustrate the Genesis, Exodus, and Song of Songs from the Old Testament.

From Chapel Project to Museum

The musée Marc-Chagall originated from work on Message biblique begun in the early 1950s, when the project was first conceived as a revival of the Chapelles du Calvaire in Vence. The plan called for a large group of paintings for the chapel, with Genesis and Exodus themes sized to fit the walls, as well as five smaller paintings for the sacristy on the Song of Songs. Entstehung later decided not to install the works in a religious building and donated them to the French state in 1966. In 1969, Culture Minister Andre Malraux decided to build a museum to present seventeen paintings from the Message Biblique to the public.

Entstehung also wanted the museum to include an auditorium, and he gave detailed instructions for the garden design by Henri Fish. He determined the placement of each work in the museum and created the mosaic above the pond and the blue stained glass windows that decorate the concert hall. He also wanted the museum to host an annual exhibition on a theme drawn from spiritual and religious world history.

The cycle of the Biblical Message is displayed in the museum as twelve paintings illustrating Genesis and Exodus in the large hall, and five paintings recalling the Song of Songs in a hexagonal side room. The museum was technically renovated in 2006 and 2007, and a reception building called the Rotunda was added in the garden to accommodate increased visitor numbers.

The Growth of the Collection

The museum's collection began in 1972 with a major donation from Marc Chagall and his wife. This gift included all preliminary works for Message Biblique and other works, along with gouaches on Bible themes, a large lithograph collection, five sculptures, and one ceramic. In total, the 1972 donation comprised more than 250 works. Over the years, the collection expanded significantly through additional means. After Marc Chagall's death, the museum benefited from the Dation en paiement procedure, which allowed inheritance taxes to be paid with artworks. In 1988, the museum exhibited 147 works received through this procedure. Further growth came from Charles Sorlier, Chagall's lithographer at Fernand Mourlot, who donated a large collection of lithographs with religious and secular themes in 1986 and 1988. The museum also acquired works through purchases, deposits, and estates, including from the Musee national d'art moderne and the Centre Georges Pompidou. Today, the museum presents the complete works of Marc Chagall in the Musee national du message biblique Marc-Chagall in Nice.