Already postponed at the start of the year, then for four years, the opening of the Brest Museum of Fine Arts should not take place before 2033, or even 2034. Réza Salami, deputy mayor in charge of cultural policy, specifies in the regional press: “We don’t do this for pleasure, but because above all, a museum has a duty to preserve its works in order to pass them on to future generations”. The establishment, faced with a mushroom infestation, is also planning the requalification and expansion of its building for a budget estimated between 30 and 40 million euros.
During the winter closure of the museum at the beginning of 2025, intended for maintenance and control of the collections, fungi were discovered on 18 of the 190 works exhibited on the ground floor and first floor. The museum then decided to extend the closure to process the paintings concerned. In March, the museum finally announced that it would remain closed until 2029, the date planned for the moving of the collections to the new conservation center, where preservation conditions will be optimal. This precaution is justified, according to restaurateur Gwenola Corbin: “They (mold) cause irreversible stains that can only be hidden by retouching. » She adds: “Mold can penetrate the reverse and cause lifting of pictorial layers. »
In 2014, traces of mold had already been observed in the collections, and the establishment had difficulty eradicating them. They reappeared in 2018, leading to a two-week closure to treat the mycelium.
The building, built in 1968, no longer meets museum standards, as Réza Salami points out: “This museum is built of concrete, a material that is not known for allowing air to circulate properly. In addition, the roof windows create thermal shock. All of this does not provide optimal conditions for conserving the works. »
These repeated incidents led elected officials to launch a program to create a conservation center, with a budget of 9 million euros. Its delivery, scheduled for 2028 at the earliest, will however not allow the museum to reopen before this date. The requalification and extension of the building will be carried out after the works have been moved. The work should make it possible to triple the exhibition spaces and rehabilitate the building to ensure optimal conservation conditions thanks to new ventilation systems.
