In the two previous posts we have explored the Riviera and Southwestern regions of France, looking at art museums dedicated to specific artists.  This time, we’ll look at those art museums scattered throughout the rest of the country that are well worth visiting if you’re passing through these towns and villages.  Many of these museums, or even some the artists they feature, are little-known not only outside France, but often within the country, even by those who know it well.

As these suggestions are scattered across the country—but excluding the southwest and Riviera—I’m using Paris as the starting point.  If you wanted a lovely day trip from the city, a suggestion would be to head out to the western suburbs of Paris to Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a delightful mix of nature, art and history.  It’s also the location of a former royal residence, built in the Renaissance style, and today it holds the collection of the Musée d’Archeologie Nationale.

The town was once the home of the composer Claude Debussy and the painter Maurice Denis.  The painter’s house and workshop is now a museum devoted to the work of this post-impressionist avant-garde artist.

The house overlooks a magnificent garden, which includes an open-air theatre, a rose garden, an orchard and a kitchen garden.  A further attraction is that the garden is dotted with sculptures by Antoine Bourdelle.  Easy to get to by direct train from Chatelet-Les Halles RER station in Paris to Saint-Germain-en-Laye, which takes 30 mins.

If you’re intending to take a trip to the Loire Valley, add the town of Angers to your list of sites to visit.  Regarded as the western gateway to the Loire, Angers is a great starting point for exploring the region’s famous châteaux, UNESCO World Heritage Sites and vineyards, serving as the hub for the Anjou region.  Located in the historic centre of town is the restored 13^th century Toussaint Abbey.  The Abbey is now the Galerie David d’Angers, housing over 400 original plaster, bronze and marble works including drawings and medallions by the sculptor Pierre-Jean David, known as David d’Angers.

The sculptor was known for the numerous portraits he created, and many of them are displayed in the museum.  One such notable portrait bust is of the writer Victor Hugo, a close friend of the sculptor, and a plaster model of the pediment of the newly renovated Pantheon in Paris.  Direct trains leave Paris Gare Montparnasse for Angers regularly throughout the day and the journey takes approx. 1 1/2hrs.

North of Paris, heading towards the border with Belgium, lies the town of Le Cateau-Cambrésis where you will find an important art museum, the Musée Départemental Henri Matisse.  It was established here in the town of his birth by Matisse himself in November 1952, and primarily displays paintings by him.  He also defined the way his works should be arranged.

Originally housed in Le Cateau’s Hotel de Ville, after the death of Matisse in 1956, the collection was moved to the Palais Fénelon, also in the town.  The Museum now has the 3^rd largest collection of Matisse works in France.  There are frequent trains throughout the day that depart from Paris Gare du Nord and take around 2 hrs 20 mins. to reach Le Cateau, and also requires a change of trains at Saint-Quentin.  Otherwise, it takes around the same time to drive there from Paris, or about an hour’s drive from Lille, 80 kms N.W. of Le Cateau-Cambrésis

If you’re a fan, or simply curious about the art of Jean Dubuffet, a visit to his Fondation Jean Dubuffet in the town of Perigny-sur-Yerres in the Val-de-Marne, just 30 mins. by car or train from Paris, will be a rewarding experience.  He eschewed traditional standards of beauty in favour of what he believed to be a more authentic and humanistic approach to image-making.  He is best known for founding the “art brut” movement, and his works are featured in galleries across the world, particularly in America.  His artistic style is very distinctive, and he tended to use a limited palette of blue, white and red.  The Fondation is located in the Villa Falbala, close to the former sculpture studios where the artist’s architectural models are now housed.

About 102 kms south east of Paris lies the town of Nogent-sur-Seine.  Easy to get to from Paris Gare de l’Est, or 102 kms by car.  This town is also only 19 kms from Provins, a lovely medieval town that we can recommend for a visit.  I wrote a blog about it a while ago, which you might like to check out, and make a trip there really worthwhile:  https://parisplusplus.com/paris/paris-region/provins-a-town-famous-for-its-medieval-fairs/

Nogent-sur-Seine has a lovely museum dedicated to the sculptor Camille Claudel, who spent her teenage years here.  Most of us probably became familiar with her through her work and later, relationship, with Auguste Rodin, although her renown is due to her considerable talent and prodigious output.  The museum has an impressive 43 – 45 examples of her work, and as well as museums across the world, the Rodin Museum in Paris has 20 of them.

Up on the Normandy coast overlooking the Seine estuary lies the picturesque seafaring port of Honfleur.  There are frequent direct trains from Paris Gare St Lazare to the nearest railway station, Le Havre, which takes about 2 hrs., and from here there is a bus that goes across to Honfleur via the magnificent Normandy Bridge, that takes around 30 mins.  By car from Paris it’s about 2hrs 20 mins. to Honfleur—roughly 190 kms.

The pre-impressionist painter and one of the pioneers of the Impressionist movement, Eugène Boudin was born in Honfleur, and there is a museum named after him, perched on a hillside in the town.  Located in the former chapel of the Augustine convent, the museum has 112 works by the artist, as well as works by other 19^th century artists who worked in Honfleur at much the same time, such as Camille Corot, Gustave Courbet and Claude Monet, who was mentored as a teenager by Boudin, encouraging him to paint alongside him outdoors.  There is also a great collection of works by the brilliant colourist Raoul Dufy, who was born in Le Havre.

To look at our next group of art museums, we head east from Paris across to the Alsace Lorraine region.

In the beautiful city of Strasbourg, amongst its many attractions, is the International Centre for Illustration, located in the Villa Greiner, a 19^th century building located near the Place de la Republique

The museum is dedicated to the renowned artist and illustrator, Tomi Ungerer, who was born in Strasbourg in 1931.  It holds approx. 14,000 of his drawings, covering work for children’s books, satire and advertising, alongside erotic works.

Strasbourg has been a notable hub of illustration since the early days of the printing press, and with the development of engraving and lithography, the city is known for artists such as Tomi Ungerer and Gustave Doré, also a native of the city, and the establishment of the highly regarded École des Arts Décoratifs in 1975.  Strasbourg is very easy to get to from Paris by TGV train, and the journey takes around 1 hr 46 mins., direct, with no stops.  There are frequent trains throughout the day.

South of Strasbourg lies Colmar, which has two very interesting art museums.  There is the Musée Bartholdi, dedicated to the sculptor Auguste Bartholdi, who was born in Colmar.  Located in the heart of town at 30 rue des Marchands, in the house where he was born, the museum is entirely dedicated to presenting the artist’s work, from his early sculptures to the monuments that marked his career.  The most famous of his works is, no doubt, the Statue of Liberty which was reproduced in bronze from a plaster cast, and its metal framework built by Gustave Eiffel.  It was given to the United States as a gift from the people of France.

The other fascinating museum in Colmar is the so-called Village of Hansi, located opposite the famous “Maison des Têtes” in the historic centre.  The museum and Village are named after the famous artist, illustrator and caricaturist Jean Jacques Waltz (whose nickname was Hansi).  He was a watercolourist, who captured Alsatian romantic and captivating landscapes, who also decorated tableware and clothes.  The museum provides an opportunity to explore the rich cultural heritage of Alsace through the artworks and interactive installations.  A truly delightful experience.

You can easily get to Colmar by train from Paris, which takes approx.. 2 hrs 20 – 40 mins., train or bus from Strasbourg, or approx. 56 mins. by car, driving along the beautiful Route du Vin, one of the loveliest routes in France, passing through vineyards and famous villages such as Ribeauvillé, Kaysersberg and Obernai all the way, and mountain ranges in the distance along much of the route.

These museums are by no means a comprehensive list of those throughout France that are dedicated to a single artist, but if you’re planning a visit to any of these areas, a visit to one of these museums will certainly enhance your trip.