In February, the Musée Fabre, in the city of Montpellier, reopened after four years of refurbishment. This architectural gem was emptied, renovated and redesigned at a cost of €62.7m (£42.4m).
Previously, the museum had been a confusing maze of ageing displays, bad access and poor ventilation: during the torrid summer heat that hits southern France, gallery windows were opened to spare suffering paintings.
Now, an enhanced collection, superb design and modern facilities grace the museum. The Fabre's desperately needed makeover is the largest museum redevelopment in southern France and will be for a long time to come.
Prior to this revamp, the Fabre had been simply a regional museum with a fine collection that visitors had to rummage through. The original museum was inaugurated in 1828, following Montpellier painter François-Xavier Fabre's remarkable donation of Italian and French classical paintings.
More donations followed, notably from art collector Alfred Bruyas, including the iconic La Rencontre by Gustave Courbet, and later from impressionist Frédéric Bazille.
Most recently, renowned modern painter Pierre Soulages donated 20 of his works. The collection was housed in a labyrinth of galleries within three awkwardly connected buildings: a 17th-century Jesuit college, the 18th-century Hotel de Massillian and a 19th-century extension.
The museum owns about 1,000 paintings, thousands of drawings (including some of the most important in France) and hundreds of sculptures.
Michel Hilaire, the director and head curator, and his curatorial team wanted to transform the displays, emphasise Montpellier's connection to great artists and collectors, and add a new wing for contemporary art.
'We wanted to create a modern museum - convivial and functional,' he says. 'A museum that is exactly of its time and which offers the user an enjoyable visit with all the new technology at their disposal. But, we also wanted the museum to keep its Montpellier specialism. One finds in the collection the personalities of the donors - the great figures that have shaped this museum. The real museums that one wants to see are those that have a personality.'
Convincing local authorities this was worthwhile was perhaps the most difficult part of the project. The museum had been refitted in the 1970s, with polystyrene ceiling tiles and a mezzanine floor hiding original features. It was not a success.
But in 2001, when a wing was vacated by the city library, renovation became feasible. A new building on the edge of the city would have been easier, but this would have betrayed the city and Fabre's memory.
Architects Brochet-Lajus-Pueyo (responsible for the Orangerie, in Paris) and Emmanuel Nebout were asked to renovate, unite and expand the museum, all within the confines of Montpellier's medieval street pattern.
Hilaire ensured that the architectural heritage was respected. Junctions between buildings are marked by a change in textures, while painted walls give way to pockets of dark imposing wood. It is here that there are further resources, or space to repose - one spot has a vertiginous view down into the internal courtyard.
The original architecture has been honoured and includes the restoration of the hitherto hidden Griffons and Columns galleries. Cunning excavations have created space for an underground temporary exhibition space and a reception area which, thanks to quirks of the landscape, are entered at street level.
But the physical renovation of the museum was not the extent of Hilaire's ambition. He wanted visitors to be able to explore the collection through multimedia or freely available films and books.
The multimedia terminals, offering access to the museum's intranet are, according to Hilaire, 'unique in the context of French fine art museums outside of Paris'.
Multimedia developer Ever-Evida believes that Montpellier Agglomération (MA), the political community of towns surrounding and including Montpellier, 'had the courage to produce a new type of museum where the conviviality of visit meets… access for the largest possible audience'.
Hilaire insists upon 'conviviality of visit' in all senses and was adamant the media spaces remained separate; the galleries are dedicated to calm contemplation of the paintings.
The €62.7m cost of the project comes from three bodies: €44.4m from MA, €15.5m from the government and €2.8m from Languedoc-Roussillon regional council. The city of Montpellier, which owns the collection, did not contribute.
It is the size of the project that makes it unusual. Other regional museums in France are undergoing renovations, but none come close to this scale. The Musée Granet in Aix en Provence reopened in 2006 following a €21m makeover, while Dijon's Musée des Beaux-Arts will cost €25m.
The Musée Fabre now ranks among France's top five regional museums alongside those in Lyon, Lille, Grenoble and Nantes.
In 2002, the Fabre was awarded Musée de France status. This recognises that, as a regional museum, it has collection befitting a national one.
Although managed by MA, the museum also answers to the Ministry of Culture through the Direction des Musées des France (DMF). DMF ensures standards in museum practice, invigilates Musée de France accreditation and provides technical support.
The collection has also been transformed; €2m was spent acquiring new works and a further €3m on restoring paintings. Anne Baxter, a British conservator involved with the restoration, considers the Fabre as one of the great French collections - and it is the Soulages collection that has become the star attraction.
Hilaire agreed with the artist's view that they should risk suspending the canvases in space. Lit by a wall of translucent glass, the black, striated canvases are an astonishing display of French contemporary art.
The local press has already labelled the Musée Fabre 'un petit Louvre', both in homage to the quality of the project and to the scale of the transformation.
The French national press, notoriously hard to please, has been equally impressed. Alongside the extra 4,000 sq metres of exhibition space, there is a bookshop, cafe, auditorium, workshop area and documentation centre. These are not yet commonplace in regional museums and have contributed to the Fabre joining the collection of modern European museums.
Physical access, so lacking before, has also been addressed. The building is now completely accessible to people with reduced mobility, an impressive achievement considering the nature of the buildings.
Audio-guides adapted for use with hearing aids are available, as well as guides for visually-impaired visitors. These are unusual in regional French museums and perhaps will inspire other museums to follow suit.
There is also a new policy of family days, while a post with responsibility for public workshops has been created. A recent exhibition at the Musée Fabre Pavilion - a temporary exhibition venue during renovation - took the daring step of hanging selected watercolours and engravings at child height.
The Fabre has always had a reputation for academic shows, but this demonstrated a willingness to develop approaches that are, for France, innovative in their attitude.
Montpellier can now claim to have a museum worthy of any capital city. Louise Hurren, a travel and culture writer, says the city has long needed a museum befitting its reputation as one of the most exciting cities in France.
'In the new Musée Fabre, it has that,' she says. 'With the Soulages gallery as dénouement, the museum is transformed into a world-class venue. This is a rare provincial museum with justified international aspirations.'
Helen Bevis is a writer and former museum curator based in France
Previously, the museum had been a confusing maze of ageing displays, bad access and poor ventilation: during the torrid summer heat that hits southern France, gallery windows were opened to spare suffering paintings.
Now, an enhanced collection, superb design and modern facilities grace the museum. The Fabre's desperately needed makeover is the largest museum redevelopment in southern France and will be for a long time to come.
Prior to this revamp, the Fabre had been simply a regional museum with a fine collection that visitors had to rummage through. The original museum was inaugurated in 1828, following Montpellier painter François-Xavier Fabre's remarkable donation of Italian and French classical paintings.
More donations followed, notably from art collector Alfred Bruyas, including the iconic La Rencontre by Gustave Courbet, and later from impressionist Frédéric Bazille.
Most recently, renowned modern painter Pierre Soulages donated 20 of his works. The collection was housed in a labyrinth of galleries within three awkwardly connected buildings: a 17th-century Jesuit college, the 18th-century Hotel de Massillian and a 19th-century extension.
The museum owns about 1,000 paintings, thousands of drawings (including some of the most important in France) and hundreds of sculptures.
Michel Hilaire, the director and head curator, and his curatorial team wanted to transform the displays, emphasise Montpellier's connection to great artists and collectors, and add a new wing for contemporary art.
'We wanted to create a modern museum - convivial and functional,' he says. 'A museum that is exactly of its time and which offers the user an enjoyable visit with all the new technology at their disposal. But, we also wanted the museum to keep its Montpellier specialism. One finds in the collection the personalities of the donors - the great figures that have shaped this museum. The real museums that one wants to see are those that have a personality.'
Convincing local authorities this was worthwhile was perhaps the most difficult part of the project. The museum had been refitted in the 1970s, with polystyrene ceiling tiles and a mezzanine floor hiding original features. It was not a success.
But in 2001, when a wing was vacated by the city library, renovation became feasible. A new building on the edge of the city would have been easier, but this would have betrayed the city and Fabre's memory.
Architects Brochet-Lajus-Pueyo (responsible for the Orangerie, in Paris) and Emmanuel Nebout were asked to renovate, unite and expand the museum, all within the confines of Montpellier's medieval street pattern.
Hilaire ensured that the architectural heritage was respected. Junctions between buildings are marked by a change in textures, while painted walls give way to pockets of dark imposing wood. It is here that there are further resources, or space to repose - one spot has a vertiginous view down into the internal courtyard.
The original architecture has been honoured and includes the restoration of the hitherto hidden Griffons and Columns galleries. Cunning excavations have created space for an underground temporary exhibition space and a reception area which, thanks to quirks of the landscape, are entered at street level.
But the physical renovation of the museum was not the extent of Hilaire's ambition. He wanted visitors to be able to explore the collection through multimedia or freely available films and books.
The multimedia terminals, offering access to the museum's intranet are, according to Hilaire, 'unique in the context of French fine art museums outside of Paris'.
Multimedia developer Ever-Evida believes that Montpellier Agglomération (MA), the political community of towns surrounding and including Montpellier, 'had the courage to produce a new type of museum where the conviviality of visit meets… access for the largest possible audience'.
Hilaire insists upon 'conviviality of visit' in all senses and was adamant the media spaces remained separate; the galleries are dedicated to calm contemplation of the paintings.
The €62.7m cost of the project comes from three bodies: €44.4m from MA, €15.5m from the government and €2.8m from Languedoc-Roussillon regional council. The city of Montpellier, which owns the collection, did not contribute.
It is the size of the project that makes it unusual. Other regional museums in France are undergoing renovations, but none come close to this scale. The Musée Granet in Aix en Provence reopened in 2006 following a €21m makeover, while Dijon's Musée des Beaux-Arts will cost €25m.
The Musée Fabre now ranks among France's top five regional museums alongside those in Lyon, Lille, Grenoble and Nantes.
In 2002, the Fabre was awarded Musée de France status. This recognises that, as a regional museum, it has collection befitting a national one.
Although managed by MA, the museum also answers to the Ministry of Culture through the Direction des Musées des France (DMF). DMF ensures standards in museum practice, invigilates Musée de France accreditation and provides technical support.
The collection has also been transformed; €2m was spent acquiring new works and a further €3m on restoring paintings. Anne Baxter, a British conservator involved with the restoration, considers the Fabre as one of the great French collections - and it is the Soulages collection that has become the star attraction.
Hilaire agreed with the artist's view that they should risk suspending the canvases in space. Lit by a wall of translucent glass, the black, striated canvases are an astonishing display of French contemporary art.
The local press has already labelled the Musée Fabre 'un petit Louvre', both in homage to the quality of the project and to the scale of the transformation.
The French national press, notoriously hard to please, has been equally impressed. Alongside the extra 4,000 sq metres of exhibition space, there is a bookshop, cafe, auditorium, workshop area and documentation centre. These are not yet commonplace in regional museums and have contributed to the Fabre joining the collection of modern European museums.
Physical access, so lacking before, has also been addressed. The building is now completely accessible to people with reduced mobility, an impressive achievement considering the nature of the buildings.
Audio-guides adapted for use with hearing aids are available, as well as guides for visually-impaired visitors. These are unusual in regional French museums and perhaps will inspire other museums to follow suit.
There is also a new policy of family days, while a post with responsibility for public workshops has been created. A recent exhibition at the Musée Fabre Pavilion - a temporary exhibition venue during renovation - took the daring step of hanging selected watercolours and engravings at child height.
The Fabre has always had a reputation for academic shows, but this demonstrated a willingness to develop approaches that are, for France, innovative in their attitude.
Montpellier can now claim to have a museum worthy of any capital city. Louise Hurren, a travel and culture writer, says the city has long needed a museum befitting its reputation as one of the most exciting cities in France.
'In the new Musée Fabre, it has that,' she says. 'With the Soulages gallery as dénouement, the museum is transformed into a world-class venue. This is a rare provincial museum with justified international aspirations.'
Helen Bevis is a writer and former museum curator based in France
