The Musée Bouchard

Installed in the sculptor’s workshop (25 rue de l'Yvette Paris 75016) after the death of artist Henri Bouchard in 1960, this unusual museum attracted thousands of visitors surprised to discover a place of creation preserved as it was and the considerable work of an artist known during his lifetime, important representative of figurative sculpted art from the first half of the 20th century.

 

The sculptor’s workshop, 25 rue de l'Yvette in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, officially recognized as a Museum of France by the Ministry of Culture was open to the public from 1962 to 2007. This unusual museum attracted thousands of visitors surprised to discover a place of creation preserved in its state, and the considerable work of an artist known for his vividness. The regular temporary exhibitions that were held in the workshop contributed to the renewed interest in figurative sculpture.

It definitively closed its doors on March 14, 2007 and transferred its collections to the Musée de La Piscine in Roubaix, where they will again be accessible to the public, in the sculpture sequence and in the reconstructed workshop.

 

It is to the artist’s son and daughter-in-law that one owes the existence of the museum in the workshop. François and Marie Bouchard, against the odds, preserved in the 60s the premises and the works that were there, refusing to give in to the real estate sirens.

Marie Bouchard obtained the diploma of the Ecole du Louvre, then continued her studies and had got the official title of museum curator.

 

They shared their passion for their subject with the museum's visiting public over nearly forty-five years, communicating their patiently accumulated knowledge of the artist's creations, his evolving style, his place among his peers, and explaining the sculpture techniques used during this period, drawing on the moulds, frames, turntables and tools that had been left in the studio.

 

 

1924 - studio built for Henri Bouchard (1875-1960) in which he produced, among others, the enormous Apollo group and the façade of the chuch of St Pierre de Chaillot.

 

1960 - death of the artist. Madame Henri Bouchard willingly opens the studio to the public.

 

1962 - creation of the Association of Friends of Henri Bouchard (AAHB) whose goal is to defend and promote the work of sculptor Henri Bouchard, the workshop is open informally.

 

1968 - death of Madame Henri Bouchard.

 

1969 - François Bouchard becomes the owner of the studio, which means the works can be kept. « open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 2pm until nightfall » (very poor lighting) then from 2pm to 7pm until 2007.

 

1984 - gift of works from the family to the the Association of the Friends of Henri Bouchard.

 

 

1985 - officially listed as a Musée de France by the French Ministry of Culture. Marie Bouchard takes on the role of curator on a voluntary basis, the Association manages the museum.

 

2006 - the idea of transferring the works from the Musée Bouchard to the Museum of Art and Industry La Piscine in Roubaix is accepted by the Ministry of Culture and becomes official with the minister's signature on 13th December 2006.

 

1986 - 2007 - about thirty distinctly different exhibitions were oragnised on various subjects and on the evolution of style. This was fortunately possible as Bouchard had been interested in a wide variety of themes, and his style clearly evolved, initially, constructed realism, then calm decorative art and monumental art; he created pieces in every possible format.

 

2007 - 2018 - Transfer and installation of the collection in the reconstructed workshop at the Musée La Piscine, in Roubaix (Nord, 59).

 

October 2018 - Opening to the public of the reconstructed Atelier Bouchard, in the permanent collection of the museum.