Amid the umbrella pines, a building stands out in the hills surrounding Saint-Paul-de-Vence. An architectural jewel of the Nice hinterland, the Maeght Foundation is a pilgrimage site for all enthusiasts of modern and contemporary art. Each year, more than 130,000 visitors venture to discover the extraordinary works it houses.
Joan Miró, Alexander Calder, Georges Braque, or even Alberto Giacometti, they are all featured equally. The Maeght Foundation brings together works by some of the most important artists of the 20th century. Created in 1964 by the couple of art dealers, publishers, and lithographers Aimé and Marguerite Maeght, the institution is recognized as being of public utility. A distinction that no one would imagine refuting, given how the place is a pillar of French cultural heritage.
As it celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, the Foundation is adding an extension designed by the architect Silvio d’Ascia and a new exhibition titled “Friendships, Bonnard-Matisse.”
A project fueled by grief
Inaugurated on July 28, 1964, the Maeght couple’s Foundation is the result of sublimated sorrow. The lives of Aimé and Marguerite were marked by the loss of their second son, Bernard. Barely 11 years old, the little boy was taken by leukemia in 1953. For their friend, the painter and sculptor Georges Braque, “one must undertake something greater than oneself” to overcome misfortune.
This “something” would come in the form of a foundation. Aimé, already a significant name in the art world thanks to his position as a dealer exhibiting in Paris, had numerous connections with the most popular artists of the time, such as Henri Matisse, Marc Chagall, or Joan Miró.
However, the true trigger for this project would be a trip to the United States where the Maeght couple discovered in 1955 the Guggenheim Foundation in New York, the Barnes Foundation in Philadelphia, and the Phillips Collection in Washington.
Of friendship and art
This cultural institution might never have come into being if life had not intertwined the destinies of Aimé and Marguerite with those of illustrious artists. For the Maeght Foundation is above all a witness to the friendship linking the couple with the painters, sculptors, and engravers who made up their close circle.
Shortly after their marriage in 1928, Aimé Maeght and Marguerite Devaye, her maiden name, opened a gallery in Cannes. Settling in a neighboring town, the painter Pierre Bonnard eventually entrusted them with the sale of his paintings.
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Featured Photo: © Sergio Grazia
