The Museum of Modern Art of Saint-Etienne Métropole houses one of the largest collections of art from the 20th and 21st centuries in France. The building was designed by the architect Didier Guichard in 1987 and offers a wide and luminous exhibition space covering 3000m2.

The Collection includes works from many different movements such as Cubism, Surrealism, Neo-expressionism, Pop Art, New Realism, Minimal Art… and encompasses more than 17,000 artworks by prestigious artists such as Pablo Picasso, Vassily Kandinsky, Victor Brauner, Joan Miro, Max Ernst, Fernand Léger, Claes Oldenburg, Jean Dubuffet, Pierre Soulages, Frank Stella, Claude Viallat, Robert Filliou, Ben, Arman, Daniel Buren…

The Collection also contains about 2300 photographs which depict the history of photography and is one of the largest single collections of photographs held in France.

Please click here to access to the collection:

Moreover, more than a thousand objects make up one of the rarest industrial design Collections in France with works by Charles and Ray Eames, Le Corbusier, Jean Prouvé, Charlotte Perriand…

Please click here to access to the design collection:

Increasing the collections with an efficient acquisition policy

Since 1947, the museum’s directors have been devoted to keeping the institution at the very core of the art world’s development.

Since 1983, the town of Saint-Etienne, then since 2001 Saint-Etienne Métropole, with the help of public founds (Ministère de la Culture, Région Rhône Alpes, Conseil Général de la Loire), has managed an active and efficient acquisition policy of historic and contemporary artworks. The generous donations of the collections of Vicky Rémy, François and Ninon Robelin, the exceptional gift in 2005 of the Collection of the Caisse des Dépôts proves that the Museum is recognised as housing one of the most significant Collections of modern and contemporary art in Europe.

Most recent acquisitions: Sean Scully (painting), Michelangelo Pistoletto (installation), Jean-Marc Bustamante (photo), Orlan (photo), Pierre Paulin (design), Arnaud Labelle-Rojoux (painting/installation), Françoise Pétrovitch (drawing)…

Arnaud Labelle-Rojoux, Who’s afraid of design, 2009. © Labelle-Rojoux   Michelangelo PISTOLETTO,  Divisione moltiplicazione dello spechio, 1973-1991. © M. Pistoletto.

A worldwide museum...

The strong reputation of the museum’s Collection of modern and contemporary art enables the museum to lend certain artworks for national and international events throughout the year. More than 600 artworks each year are lent and exhibited throughout the world in prestigious museums and institutions. Ex situ exhibitions of the Collection are regularly presented abroad.

Exhibitions

The exhibitions and collections attract a regional, national and international public. The Museum presents a dozen exhibitions each year with three separate opening dates (September, February and May). Young and famous artists are exhibited and collective exhibitions are organized with other major European institutions.

Between 1987 and 2009, more than 50 000 visitors per year have come to visit great exhibitions such as L’Ecriture Griffée, Entre la Sérénité et l’Inquiétude, Alberto Giacometti, le Siècle du Design, Passage d’Europe, Gilbert and George, Domicile, Georg Baselitz, Orlan, Sean Scully, Antony Gormley, L’attraction de l’espace…

A cultural programme (shows, conference, concert…) aims at making the museum more accessible to the public and enabling the visitor to discover the different aspects of the contemporary creation.

Museum Educators offer adapted programmes for children and youth, from 4 up to 25 years old: visits, workshops, seminars, art and cultural projects... Each year, about 15 000 school pupils and students come to visit the museum.

Adresse postale: Musée d'Art Moderne - La Terrasse - BP 80241 - 42006 St-Etienne cedex 1 - Adresse GPS: Rue Fernand Léger - 42270 Saint-Priest-en-Jarez
Ouvert tous les jours sauf le mardi de 10 h à 18 h - Tél. : 04 77 79 52 52