Another take on modern art

Travel through time, space and different cultures by discovering the collection of nearly 900 works of the Modern Art Museum of Fontevraud. Paintings, drawings, sculptures, glassware and antique items from the Cligman collection come together to give you a new look at modern art.

Toulouse-Lautrec, Edgar Degas, Maurice de Vlaminck, Albert Marquet, Kees van Dongen, Robert Delaunay, Juan Gris, André Derain, Germaine Richier, and more. So many names who left their mark on the history of art and feature in Martine and Léon Cligman’s extensive collection of modern art, which was built up throughout their lifetime.

To reconstruct the history of art from the perspective of a collector

The museum is known for the story it seeks to tell: a representation of the spirit of a collection.

The reproduction of a “museum without walls”, a highly personal and even emotional work of the mind, leads the visitor to enter a universe of shapes and to understand the perspective that guided the choices in terms of acquisitions.

Drawing on the richness and variety of this collection, the exhibition will reveal the fascinating approach which consisted of passing from a private universe to a public space, to enable visitors to experience an interpretation that transcends space and time due to the juxtaposition of cultural artefacts and different eras. They will also discover artists through the eyes of discerning art lovers from the second half of the 20^th century.

Albert Marquet, Le Quai des Grands-Augustins, vers 1904-1906

The collection includes:

More than a hundred paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries, from Toulouse-Lautrec and Camille Corot to Robert Delaunay, Juan Gris, Georges Rouault, Chaïm Soutine and Bernard Buffet.
Nearly 300 drawings, including 36 original illustrations for Pétronius’ Satyricon by André Derain.
Sculptures by Edgar Degas, André Derain, and in particular a remarkable collection of fourteen works by Germaine Richier.
88 spectacular pieces of glassware by Maurice Marinot.
Antiques and pieces from outside Europe (Mesopotamian, Egyptian and Cycladic, African, Oceanian, Asian and Amerindian).

Photo de l’en-tête : Chaïm Soutine, Les Oranges sur fond vert, 1916, huile sur toile

A first Michelin star in the Green Guide for the museum

Freshly inaugurated in May 2021, the Fontevraud Museum of Modern Art won its first star in the 2022 edition of the Green Guide Châteaux de la Loire, Pays de la Loire, by Michelin, one of the most read book collections by Europeans tourists.

Located in the Fannerie building, a historic monument, the museum thus joins the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud, which is listed in the Green Guide with 3 stars as one of the top sites that is worth the trip.

Feedback on artworks

We always seek to deepen our knowledge of the artworks belonging to the museum’s collection. Your areas of expertise are welcome. If you have scientific facts to supplement or rectify the information about an artwork, please do not hesitate to contact us: