Early Modern · Architecture

Musée Cantini

Marseille

Musée Cantini is an art museum located at 19 de la rue Grignan in Marseille, in the former hôtel de Montgrand. The hôtel particulier was built in 1694 for the Compagnie du Cap Nègre in Tunisia, which specialized in coral fishing and in trading wool, wax, and leather. It later changed hands several times before being acquired by Jules Cantini in 1888. A sculptor and prominent marble worker in Marseille, Cantini contributed to many civil and religious buildings in the city under the Second Empire. After his death in 1916, he bequeathed the building to the city of Marseille, which was tasked with creating a decorative arts museum there. The museum opened to the public in 1936. It first presented 19th-century works, especially by painters of the Provençal school, and later developed collections devoted to modern art and contemporary art. Its holdings complement those of the Musée d’art contemporain de Marseille.

Map showing the location of Musée Cantini in Marseille
Location of Musée Cantini in Marseille

Nearby Objects

Location and Collections

The Musée Cantini is located at 19 de la rue Grignan in Marseille, in the former hotel de Montgrand. It houses collections of modern art and contemporary art. These collections complement those of the musee d'art contemporain de Marseille, placing the museum within a wider artistic context in the city.

From Private Mansion to Decorative Arts Museum

Musee Cantini is housed in a hotel particulier built in 1694 for the Compagnie du Cap Negre in Tunisia, a company specialized in coral fishing and in trading wool, wax, and leather. About 15 years after its construction, the building was sold to Dominique de Montgrand, husband of Marguerite de Bionneau and great-grandfather of Jean-Baptiste-Jacques-Guy-Thereese de Montgrand, who later became mayor of Marseille. Jean-Baptiste-Jacques-Guy-Th erese de Montgrand sold the property to Louis Joseph Chaudoin, and it was later bought by Dieudonne Bernadac.

In 1888, Jules Cantini acquired the hotel particulier. Cantini was a sculptor and prominent marble worker in Marseille, known for contributing to many civil and religious buildings in the city during the Second Empire. The building was also rented to the club des Phoceens. At his death in 1916, Cantini bequeathed the hotel particulier to the city of Marseille, on the condition that it be used to create a decorative arts museum. The museum opened to the public in 1936.

Modern Art Collections at Musee Cantini

Musee Cantini initially presented 19th century artworks, with a notable emphasis on painters of the Provenal school. Artists featured included Paul Guigou, Adolphe Monticelli, Emile Loubon, Rene Seyssaud, Felix Ziem, Maurice Bompard, Jean-Antoine Constantin, Gustave Ricard, and Jose Silbert. The museum later specialized in modern art from the first half of the 20th century up to the 1960s, and its holdings are described as one of the most important public French provincial collections covering the period 1900 to 1980, with a scope comparable to museums in Lyon, Saint-Etienne, Grenoble, and Strasbourg.

The exhibited works cover several major phases of modern art. Early 20th century movements represented include pointillism, fauvism, and cubism. The collection also includes numerous artistic currents of the interwar period, such as abstract art, dadaism, Art Deco, and purism. Major works of surrealism are present, linked to the presence of many surrealist members in Marseille in 1940 and 1941. Africanism is represented by Elisabeth Faure.

Beyond painting, the museum collection includes sculptures, including 20th century works. It also conserves drawings by artists such as Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Auguste Herbin, Edward Hopper, Victor Brauner, Oscar Dominguez, Max Jacob, Jean Fautrier, Jean Dubuffet, Giorgio Morandi, Andre Masson, Mark Rothko, Zoran Music, Bram van Velde, Jean Degottex, Andre Lanskoy, Joseph Sima, Zao Wou-Ki, and Sam Francis. Prints by Georges Braque, Alexander Calder, Serge Poliakoff, and Ossip Zadkine are also held. In addition, the museum has an important photography collection with works by Felix Nadar, Charles Marville, Gustave Le Gray, Edouard Baldus, Charles Negre, Onesipe Aguado, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, Raoul Hausmann, Hans Bellmer, Henri Cartier Bresson, Andre Kertesz, Berenice Abbott, Edouard Boubat, Lucien Clergue, Marc Riboud, Martine Franck, and Germaine Krull.