In Beauvais, the Mudo – Oise Museum managed by the department will reopen on March 22 after a year and a half of work. Installed in the Palais des Bishops of Beauvais, classified as a historic monument and built in the 12th century and then altered in the 14th and 16th centuries, the museum had opened its doors in 1981. In particular, there is an important fund of 19th century: Corot, Sisley, Huet or Ingres and Couture.
Problem: the building has not been designed to accommodate a large audience and poorly supports attendance. The museum then closes for works, reopens in 2015 then closed again in 2023. The latest work, subsidized up to 2.2 million euros by the National Development and Development Fund for the territory (FNDAT), the Hauts-de-France region and the Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC), and up to 1.5 million euros by the Departmental Council, focused on the development of the second floor of the Renaissance Palace XXth century, not visible to the public since 1997. For the first time, moreover, since that date, the three floors of the Beauvais episcopal palace will be accessible to visitors.
Thus, from March 22, visitors will be able to discover the exhibition of the 19th century collection, on the first floor: 160 works are presented in eight rooms. “The objective was to make the whole as accessible as possible to all audiences, physically and intellectually, so that we can share our departmental treasures together”explains to Oise news The director of Mudo, Alexandre Estaquet-Legrand. A mediation space for children has also been arranged.
On the second floor, the collection of 200 works from the 20th century is distributed in 12 rooms and covers different artistic eras and currents: Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Orientalism, Abstraction, After Warring. On the third floor, visitors will be able to discover the framework of the building dating from the 16th century.
The renovation work is part of a project to revitalize the Beauvais episcopal district. In recent years, the city has found that the flows of visitors have run out of steam and abandoned the different sites such as the Mudo, the Cathedral and the Quadrilateral. The Department therefore provides for a transversal exposure circuit which would ensure continuity between the different places. This circuit should be inaugurated in 2028.
