The Céret museum fragments its history

Céret (Pyrénées-Orientales). In the manner of cubism which wanted to represent all the facets of a reality observed on the same plane, the Museum of Modern Art of Céret wanted to mark its 75th anniversary by an exhibition offering another dimension of its singular relationship to artists: the donations made by the artists themselves to the museum foundation and beyond. This completes the permanent exhibition which includes many works by artists who came to stay in Céret.

The reference to cubism is not just a figure of style. It was in Céret between 1911 and 1913 that Picasso and Braque continued their work to the point that the city will later be baptized the “Mecca of Cubism” (abusively since the Salmon spoke in 1912 of “Saintes of art”). Following them, many artists came to this village in the Pyrenees, between sea and mountain, close to Spain: Soutine, Masson, Dalí … Since its reopening in 2022, after work that made it possible to increase exhibition areas, the permanent journey tells this story with more scale.

Quality of donations

Several artists including two in particular, and which artists !, are common to the two courses: Matisse and Picasso. Responding to the call of Pierre Brune, artist himself and first director of the museum, Matisse gave 13 drawings and, in 1954, a Large woman’s head (1945). Matisse’s stay in Céret is not attested but, having stayed several times in Collioure, it would be surprising that he did not cross the few kilometers separating the two villages. Picasso, he gave 57 pieces between 1950 and 1956, including the famous set of “bullfighting cups”.

These two names say the quality of the ceded works. Donors have not separated from mediocre sketches or works: the hanging designed by Jean-Roch Dumont Saint-Priest (Director and Curator) and Aude Marchand (collections manager) is very likely. It reflects the attachment of artists to its founders in the 1950s, and later to the conservatives who succeeded each other and organized exhibitions of contemporary artists of good quality. This is the case of Auguste Herbin, who has stayed in Céret on several occasions and gave works, one, one, Abstraction (1939), opens the exhibition. Or Christian Bonnefoi (born in 1948), who after having benefited from an exhibition in 2012 gave a work made up of silk papers punished on the wall (Ubu king).

The whole does not pretend to offer a summary of creation in France between 1950 and today. “It is a window open to diversity”explains the director. However, lyrical abstraction is represented by Christine Boumeester (1904-1971); The questioning of painting by Claude Viallat (born in 1936) and supports/surfaces; conceptual art by Hervé Fischer (1941) and its Fisher & Cie pharmacy ; The return to painting by Vincent Bioulès (born in 1938) – which is a bit at his home at the museum. In addition to the friendship that links their authors to the museum, a common point characterizes the works: color. It is not surprising, the light, the motor, the Mati Fauvism in Collioure, bathes this small mountain region throughout the year and enhances the pigments of the palette.

Today, it is mainly tourists from around the world who roam the alleys of Céret and the aisles of the museum. However, the latter wishes to cultivate his identity turned towards the art of his time by updating regularly, as he did last March, his contemporary art journey.