Until March 6, the Fabre museum, in Montpellier (Hérault), unveils in its major winter exhibition the greatest works it has acquired, since its reopening, after its renovation, in 2007. Pietro da Rimini, Nicolas Poussin, Luca Giordano… Rich with a hundred paintings, drawings and sculptures, the exhibitionBeauty in sharing was designed so that visitors “become truly aware of the exceptional policy of enriching the collections” of the
Fabre museum, says its director, Michel Hilaire. More than any other provincial museum.
But how does the Musée Fabre team select the works it acquires? First, by always keeping an eye on the art market. By being present, “in Paris, London or even New York”, during public sales of major works, or at major fairs, explains Michel Hilaire. “We also have a network of gallery owners, who offer us works,” continues the curator. It also happens that we receive letters from individuals who offer us works. Finally, the museum can acquire paintings from the artists themselves.
“Preserving the spirit of the collection”
But there is no question, for the museum, to buy everything and anything. The team’s objective is to “preserve the spirit of the collection, that of the first donors, such as François-Xavier Fabre or Alfred Bruyas. Our role is to define his personality, while opening up, sometimes towards other artists and other trends ”, underlines its director, Michel Hilaire. This is how the Fabre museum, considered rather classic, has opened up to more contemporary movements in recent years.
However, there is one decisive factor in whether or not to buy a work: the budget. That of the Fabre museum is, of course, not unlimited. Each year, the metropolis allocates 400,000 euros to it, and the foundation of museum companies, which brings together around thirty patrons, between 280,000 and 300,000 euros. In addition, there are contributions from the Friends of the Fabre Museum, private patrons, the Occitanie region and the State.
“I could do an exhibition of regrets”
But, if the exhibition Beauty in sharing brings together a hundred major works, from the Renaissance to the present day, that the museum has managed to acquire, it sometimes happens that the museum misses a nugget. ” Sure ! I could do an exhibition of regrets, paintings that the museum has not managed to buy, in particular because the painting was too expensive, notes Michel Hilaire. We are not here to buy a painting at any price. We would distort the art market. But we try to do the maximum. “
On the sidelines of this winter exhibition, the museum innovates, by testing with the public a new way of acquiring a work, The impossible encounter, by Yan Pei-Ming: a participatory campaign. On the museum site, anyone who wishes can make a donation, however small, to purchase this contemporary reinterpretation of The encounter by Gustave Courbet. In return, participants receive entrance tickets to the museum, subscriptions or books. The museum hopes to collect around 10% of the price of the work with this campaign, or 30,000 to 40,000 euros.