Founded in 1801, the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux (MusBA) is the city's oldest municipal museum and a major cultural player regionally, nationally and internationally. At 20 cours d'Albret, this emblematic museum offers a rich, varied journey through European art history, with strong regional identity thanks to Bordeaux artists' works.
The museum houses permanent collections covering a significant panorama of European art. Works by great masters such as Perugino, Titian, Veronese, Velvet Brueghel, Van Dyck, Rubens, Chardin, Delacroix, Corot, Rodin, Kokoschka, Picasso, and Matisse. Dutch painting holds a special place, drawing many attentive, passionate Dutch visitors.
MusBA also stands out for its strong regional identity, spotlighting Bordeaux-native artists such as neoclassicists Lacour and Taillasson, symbolist Redon, fauvist Marquet, Bordeaux Art Deco painter Dupas, and cubist Lhote. These works testify to the region's artistic wealth and its influence through the centuries.
A Journey Between Two Wings
The collections tour is split between the two museum wings. The south wing is dedicated to old collections from the 15th to 18th centuries, while the north wing covers 19th and 20th century works. The welcome area in the south wing hall, with a shop, offers a first pleasant immersion into the museum's universe.
The museum offers rich cultural programming and dynamic mediation for all audiences. Temporary exhibitions, workshops, guided tours and talks are regularly organized to enrich visitors' experience and promote access to culture.
Big exhibitions take place at the Galerie des Beaux-Arts, built in 1939 near the museum on place du Colonel Raynal. This gallery offers extra space for large temporary exhibitions, letting you discover exceptional works and varied themes.
Major pieces like Rubens's "Martyrdom of Saint George" and "The Abduction of Ganymede", or "Laocoon and his sons bitten by snakes" by his student Soutman, sit alongside new acquisitions like Spierincks's "Triumph of Silenus" and van Baburen's "Pipe Smoker".
A Focus on the 20th Century
The 20th century collection also benefited from new deposits. Notable pieces include Charles Lacoste's "La Gironde vers l'océan", lent by Musée d'Orsay, and Albert Marquet's "Le Pont-Neuf la nuit", lent by Musée national d'Art moderne. These works further enrich the collection and offer a unique view of modern art.
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux
20 cours d'Albret, 33000 Bordeaux
05 56 10 20 56
Price: €8; reduced €4.50
Beaux-Arts museum alone: €6; reduced €3.50
Free with Bordeaux City Pass
Free for under 18s, 1st Sunday of month except July, August.
Hours: Open daily except Tuesday and some holidays. Check the official site for detailed hours.
Website: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux.
