Musée Regards de Provence

The Musée Regards de Provence in Marseille houses a significant collection of around 850 works documenting the artistic heritage of the city, Provence and the entire Mediterranean region from the 18th century to the present day. Paintings, sculptures, drawings and photographs by artists such as Raoul Dufy, Henri Manguin and Othon Friesz are shown here in a permanent exhibition, with the holdings rotated about every five months. The offerings are complemented by changing special exhibitions devoted to modern and contemporary art related to the south of France. The collection was assembled by the Fondation Regards de Provence, founded in 1997, which had previously presented its works at other venues in Marseille before moving into its own specially converted site in 2013 as part of the European Capital of Culture year.

The historical context of the museum building, located on the north side of the Old Port, is especially appealing. It is the former maritime health station, built in 1948 by the architects Fernand Pouillon, René Egger and Champollion in the so-called Style paquebot (ocean-liner style). The triangular shape recalls the bow of a ship and originally served to screen arriving travelers for contagious disease, with the architectural design ensuring a strict separation between arriving and departing passengers. Today the building holds the Architecture contemporaine remarquable label and is considered an early major work by Pouillon as well as a transition between modernism and urban expression.

For visitors, the museum offers not only a journey of discovery through art history but also architectural highlights. The restored sterilization room with its original technical equipment is integrated into the tour as a documentary installation. The generous glass facades open up wide sight lines to the Joliette harbor, Fort Saint-Jean and the MuCEM. With a total area of 2,300 square meters, including more than 1,200 square meters of exhibition space, a restaurant with a rooftop terrace, a bookstore and a museum shop also invite you to linger and relax.