Bourdelle Museum

The Musée Bourdelle is located in the 15th arrondissement of Paris and occupies the former studio of the French sculptor Antoine Bourdelle. The site is an authentic testament to the Parisian artists' studios of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Bourdelle lived and worked here from 1885 until his death in 1929, in a neighborhood that was then characterized by gardens and vineyards and where other renowned artists, such as Aimé-Jules Dalou and Eugène Carrière, also had their studios. Turning the site into a museum became possible only after the artist's death, thanks to the efforts of his family and the financial commitment of the patron Gabriel Cognacq, who advanced the funds to purchase the property in order to keep the collection from being dispersed.

The permanent collection comprises more than five hundred works, including marble, plaster, and bronze statues, paintings, pastels, and fresco sketches. Particularly noteworthy are the original plaster casts of major sculptures, such as the twenty-one studies of Ludwig van Beethoven, as well as copies of Greek and medieval works. You can also admire Bourdelle's personal art collection, which includes works by contemporaries such as Auguste Rodin, Eugène Delacroix, and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. The tour is arranged chronologically and didactically so that you can follow the master's artistic development. The exhibition is complemented by loans from contemporary artists and from Bourdelle's students, including works by Alberto Giacometti, Jean Arp, and Ossip Zadkine.