Do you know the Picasso Museum in Paris, Barcelona or Vallauris? Antibes also has a museum dedicated to this major 20th-century artist. We recommend a visit to the Musée Picasso in Antibes, where you can discover other facets of his work (ceramics, sculpture…). Housed in the Château Grimaldi in the old town, it offers a pleasant setting for visits, with views over the Mediterranean.
In this article, we’ll give you all our tips for discovering this charming museum.
This guide is completely independent, based on our experiences. We visited the region anonymously, making our own choices and paying our bills in full.
Why visit the Musée Picasso/Château Grimaldi in Antibes?
Is the Musée Picasso in Antibes worth it? Our review
Absolutely! We recommend that you visit this museum during your stay, because the location is both beautiful and interesting. In fact, it features in our selection of must-do activities in Antibes. Here are the 3 main reasons to discover it, in our opinion:
- For its very pleasant setting: housed in the Château Grimaldi, a 15th-century château in Old Antibes, the museum features a sea-view terrace, where you can admire some beautiful sculptures.
- For his ceramics collection: Picasso took up ceramics at the Madoura workshop in Vallauris, then deposited 78 pieces with the museum in 1948.
- Discover the painter’s mythological inspirations: at this time, Picasso was living on the Mediterranean coast, in a mild, happy climate, and was inspired by Antiquity. His work at the time was different from what we’re used to seeing!
Why is the Musée Picasso in Antibes famous?
The Musée Picasso in Antibes is famous as one of the oldest museums dedicated to the artist, after the one in Barcelona. It became the “Musée Picasso” in 1966, after the artist set up his studio there from mid-September to mid-November 1946, at the suggestion of the curator at the time. The museum is also known for its collection of ceramics, as well as for its painted works that reveal Picasso’s style at the end of his career, such as Joie de Vivre (1946).
This is one of the best museums in Antibes.
What we liked best
Our choices are subjective, based on our artistic sensibility. Still, we’d like to share our 3 favorite moments from our visit to the museum:
- The terrace and its sculptures: the Château Grimaldi terrace overlooks the sea. We enjoyed strolling around and admiring the modern sculptures on display (works by Germaine Richier, Joan Miró…).
- Ceramics: we found it interesting to observe the artist’s experiments with this medium, which he sublimates with a naive style.
- Ulysses and the Sirens (1947): We fell in love with this work, which revisits this famous episode from the Odyssey in a stylized, geometric style.
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Practical tips and map: Musée Picasso, Antibes, France.
Where is Château Grimaldi?
The museum is located at the following address: Château Grimaldi, Place Mariejol, 06600 Antibes. It is located in the Vieil Antibes district.
Here’s a map of the region to help you find your way:
- Driving time from Cannes: 30min.
- Driving time from Nice: 35min.
- Driving time from Monaco: 50min.
- Driving time from Marseille: 2h10.
How to get there
To get to the Musée Picasso, you have several options:
- Get there by car. The museum is easy to find and well signposted. On the other hand, the narrow streets of Old Antibes can be difficult to navigate and park in. There can be traffic jams, especially during the summer season. Allow 5 minutes from the city center, and 10 minutes from the seaside resort of Juan-les-Pins.
- On foot: this is the option we recommend, to take advantage of the Promenade de l’Amiral de Grasse, which runs alongside the museum, and to stroll through Old Antibes. It’s just a 5-minute walk from Port Vauban and the city center. It’s less suitable if you’re staying in Juan-les-Pins (30min walk).
- By bus: Antibes has a significant bus network linking it to the surrounding towns (Cannes, Biot, Vallauris…). The Antibes bus station, just a 10-minute walk from the museum, is served by numerous lines. We invite you to plan your itinerary on the official website of the agglomeration’s transport network, here.
OUR TPS FOR RENTING YOUR CAR IN Provence
- Compare prices on our preferred platform: DiscoverCars – one of the best rated sites.
- Choose a car that is powerful enough (the roads are steep) but compact (some passages are narrow).
- Think of thecomplete insurance (some roads are tortuous and narrow).
- There is a lot of demand, book it early.
Parking
The museum does not have a dedicated parking lot. Located in the old town, it’s difficult to park nearby. We advise you to go directly to a paid parking lot. You can park next to the Musée d’Archéologie, for example, and walk up the Promenade de l’Amiral de Grasse to the Château Grimaldi, or park at the Port Vauban. Here you’ll find Q-Park Pré aux Pêcheurs, an underground parking lot open 24 hours a day.
Schedules and rates
Here are the museum opening times:
- September 16 to June 14: open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 6pm.
- June 15 to September 15: open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am to 6 pm.
- Closed January 1, May 1, November 1 and December 25.
Here are the prices:
- Full price: €8
- Reduced rate: €6
- Free admission for under-18s, jobseekers…
For the latest rates and a complete list of free and reduced-rate beneficiaries, visit the official website here.
Best time to visit the museum
The Musée Picasso is a must-see museum in Antibes. Its privileged location in the heart of the old town can lead to high footfall, especially on weekend afternoons. If you can, we advise you to go during the week, preferably outside the school year. If you’re an early riser, we recommend you get there as soon as it opens!
Visit duration and practical information
Allow 1 hour to visit this museum. There are no particular difficulties. It has elevator access for the disabled. Toilets and a checkroom are available. You can also download the visit application here, which offers tours in LSF and audiodescription.
Advice on how to visit
We recommend that you follow the direction indicated. Enjoy the first floor first before moving upstairs.
The Picasso Museum in Antibes with children
For a family visit, we recommend downloading the museum’s official app, which includes a children’s trail. It is available here and in 4 languages (French, English, German, Italian). A games booklet, which you can find here, can also help your child discover the museum.
Nearby restaurants
The museum’s location, in the heart of Old Antibes, is ideal as it is close to numerous restaurants. Here are our favorite addresses:
- Restaurant Le Figuier de Saint-Esprit: this Michelin-starred restaurant offers an enchanting setting with its shaded terrace and string lights.
- Restaurant Arazur: we were won over by its refined, seasonal cuisine, served in a beautiful vaulted cellar.
- Healthy Lounge Restaurant: we really enjoyed this tasty and colourful healthy restaurant!
WHERE TO STAY IN Antibes
Option 1: near the ramparts
Close to the ramparts, to enjoy the charm of the old town and all the restaurants.
Hôtel la Villa Port – See prices, photos and availability
On the beach side (Ponteil and Salis) with views of the ramparts and mountains.
Hôtel La Jabotte – See prices, photos and availability
In Juan-les-Pins, in the heart of the peninsula.
Hôtel La Villa Cap d’Antibes – See prices, photos and availability
Museum history
Château Grimaldi
Château Grimaldi is a listed monument that immediately caught our eye. It was founded on the ancient acropolis of the Greek city of Antipolis. The Romans later built a castrum, a fortified camp for their legions. In the Middle Ages, it was the residence of bishops, before being occupied by the Grimaldi family from 1385 to 1608.
This family, originally from Genoa in Italy, includes several branches of lords who ruled over the counties of Nice and Monaco. Their descendants still rule the Principality today. In the 18th century, the building became a town hall, before being converted into barracks in the 19th century. It was not until 1925 that it was purchased by the city and became the Musée Grimaldi. We discovered this story at the very end of the tour.
Picasso’s studio
In 1945, Pablo Picasso visited the Château Grimaldi. This was a period when the artist spent a great deal of time on the Côte d’Azur, whether at the Golf-Juan, in Nice to see Matisse, or in Vallauris, where he settled with his partner Françoise Gilot in 1948. 2 years earlier, Picasso temporarily set up his studio at the château, at the suggestion of the museum’s curator, Dor de la Souchère. It’s a very productive time. On his departure, the painter left the museum 23 paintings and 44 drawings, forming the basis of the Musée Picasso collection. Although no trace of this workshop remains (apart from photographs), we felt that this feature gave the museum an extra soul.
Diversifying the collection
Following the departure of Pablo Picasso, the collection was enriched several times. The first came in 1948, when the museum became the owner of 78 ceramics produced by the artist in 1947 and 1948 in Vallauris. The part of the tour devoted to these ceramics is our favourite! The collection was subsequently expanded by a number of purchases and gifts, the most significant of which was the dation from Jacqueline Picasso, the painter’s last wife, in 1991. The first floor of the museum displays works by another artist, Nicolas de Staël (1914-1955), who also benefited from a residency at Château Grimaldi. On his death, many of his works were donated to the museum by his wife, and in 2001 by the Hans Hartung and Anna-Eva Bergman Foundation.
Finally, let’s not forget the presence of many other 20th-century artists, who agreed to donate some of their works to the museum. These include a sculpture by Arman, seen at the start of the tour, and those by artists such as Germaine Richier and Joan Miró on the sculpture terrace.
The Picasso collection
Mythological inspirations
Picasso’s stay on the Côte d’Azur inspired him to use many mythological subjects in his paintings. In fact, it was these works that impressed us the most. We found the triptych Satyr, Faun and Centaur with Trident (1946) particularly interesting. In fact, you’ll see a lot of repentance, and you won’t be able to resist its “rough” design.
In addition to the large canvas ofUlysse et les Sirènes (1947), already mentioned, we were charmed by La Joie de Vivre (1946), a work that reveals the artist’s state of mind during this period. Pablo Picasso had just settled down with his partner Françoise Gilot and had a child with her. The painting is cheerful, featuring a flute-playing centaur on the left, and a nymph and a musician faun on the right. The background, with a boat, sets the scene in a Mediterranean environment.
Simplification research
The tour also provides an insight into the artist’s search for simplification and geometry. We’ve particularly noticed him in his depictions of nudes and portraits of women, which occupy an important place in the museum’s collection. We were struck by this in his Nu couché au lit bleu (1946).
We were delighted to discover this feature thanks to many of the painter’s drawings!
This was also visible in other types of representation, such as still lifes, where apples are represented by circles, for example.
Ceramics
This was our favorite part of the visit! We didn’t know that Pablo Picasso had tried his hand at this medium. These include themes he had already explored during his installation at Château Grimaldi (animals, mythological figures, etc.). Many dishes are displayed on the walls, but there are also shaped pieces (pitchers, tanagras, zoomorphic vases).
We enjoyed observing these unique pieces, which feature a cheerful, naive style with simplified lines, as seen in La Joie de Vivre.
SHE MADE THE TRIP Claire
