Oysters and Picasso: A Day Trip to Antibes

Saturday February 25 was another cloudy day (too many of them) with a high of 15C.

Our street-- our apartment building is the orange coloured one on the left side of the picture

We walked through the Palais de Justice square, where a Saturday book market was taking place.

Lots of folks perusing the book stalls

We had about a 20 minute walk to the train station, where we were catching the 11:20 a.m. train to Antibes.  We had been thinking about going to Cannes, but lots of people said we should instead go to Antibes for our last day trip.  Antibes is about 15km southeast of Nice.  It is a very picturesque old town with stone ramparts and medieval towers and it is the site of a Picasso Museum.  Since it wasn't a beach day, and we didn't feel like just wandering around the luxury stores in Cannes, a trip to Antibes made a lot of sense.  I hadn't been there since 1986. 

Nice Train Station

It is only about a 30 minute train ride to Antibes.  Along the way, we went past a huge apartment complex that looked like an ocean liner,  with lots of trees on the balconies.

Huge complex en route in one of the coastal towns

It was a short walk from the train station to the Tourist Office in  Le Vieil Antibes (Old Antibes).  We got a map and some information  on directions to the Musée Picasso which is on the waterfront.

Antibes had been named Antipolis -meaning across from (anti) the city (polis)- by the Greeks who founded it in the 4th century BC. and it also flourished under the Romans' rule.  In the Middle Ages, the kings of France began fortifying this key port town.  A young general Napoléon lived with his family in a humble house in the Old Town.

We walked by the large Place Nationale square-- too early for lunch

One of the busy pedestrian streets with lots of wonderful bakeries and food stores

City Hall

Our first stop was the Covered Market, which is open every day but Monday from 7:30 a.m. until around 1:00 p.m.

Le Marché Provençal

Lots of lavender

All weather shopping

After a walk through, we decided to explore a number of the nearby streets before having lunch.

Small Antibes Theatre

Interesting looking restaurants

We found a wider street near the water with a number of artists' studios.  We stopped at "Terres de Couleurs",  a store with the work of 6 artists- 5 ceramists and a jeweller.

Outside of Terres de Couleurs on Boulevard d'Aguillon

We were immediately captivated by the blue and white porcelain pieces by Barbara Schull, who fortuitously was minding the store.  She won the Prix régional de la Création 2021 des Ateliers d'Art de France.  We bought two small espresso cups and a small plate.  It was hard to pick as the designs were all very interesting.

Barbara Schull in front of her work

The street with the studios

Antibes has always been an artist's hangout. Claude Monet fell in love with the town.  He arrived in January 1888, and expected to stay only a few days; three months later, he had shipped off 39 canvases to be exhibited in Paris at the gallery of Vincent van Gogh's brother, Theo.  He loved the sun and painted from four sites in the area.  His most famous paintings from Antibes show the fortified old town against the sea.

We were very close to the water, so went out to the Old Port.

Map of Antibes in an alcove

Lots of boats

The ramparts

More boats

Every town seems to have a ferris wheel

The port and Fort Carré (16th century star-shaped fort) in the distance

After walking around a bit more, we headed back to the covered market, where we had noticed a small fish store with an eating area and an adjacent coffee shop on one side of the market.

La Pescheria had beautiful looking fish and had a special of six oysters and a glass of chardonnay for 12 euros.  The place was busy and the one server was a bit overwhelmed.  We finally got seated and had a fabulous lunch.  I had the oysters which were superb and SO fresh.

Outside of La Pescheria-- buzzy busy

The lunch specials

Fish guy talking a moment before preparing fish orders

Alain had a dorade carpaccio- with red peppercorns-- a nice portion for 12 euros.  
I had the oysters and a glass of  chardonnay (also 12 euros)

Cheers--- large, delicious, fresh oysters in February-- what could be better

We then went next store to Copenhagen Coffee Lab for coffee and a post lunch sweet.  Alain had read about this café.  The coffee was excellent.

Copenhagen Coffee Lab-- they also had some great looking breads

From the outside--- right next to La Pescheria

We then went to the Picasso Museum, which had been closed from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. and had just reopened after lunch.  The Museum is housed in the medieval Château Grimaldi. Its square watchtower, along with the bell tower of the neighbouring Église de l'immaculée-Conception borders the Place de la Cathédrale.  

From 1385 to 1608, the Grimaldi castle, built on the site of the ancient acropolis of the Greek city of Antipolis, a Roman camp, and the residence of medieval bishops, was inhabited by the Monaco family who gave it its name.  In 1925, it was bought by the municipality of Antibes and became the Grimaldi museum.  In 1928, it was classified as a historic monument.  

It was little more than a monument until 1946, when its curator,  Romuald Dor de la Souchère offered the use of one of its vast chambers to Picasso.  Here, Picasso experimented with techniques, scale, and different mediums. The official opening of a room dedicated to Picasso took place in 1947.  He made a number of donations to the Grimaldi Castle over the years.  In 1966,  the Mayor of Antibes decided that the Grimaldi Castle should become the "Musée Picasso."  There was also a donation in 1990 by Jacqueline Picasso.  These works form the core of the Musée Picasso, which underwent a major renovation between 2006-08.

The imposing Château Grimaldi which is now the Musée Picasso

The museum and nearby church

A rotating display on the second floor (third story) includes more than 300 works by the artist, as well as pieces by Miró, Calder and Léger.  On the first floor (second story) are the temporary exhibitions as well as a room dedicated to the works of Nicolas de Staël (1914-55), who spent the last winter of his life in Antibes creating more than 300 paintings before throwing himself from a window.

However, before we went upstairs, we went downstairs to a small exhibition area, that has a small permanent collection of paintings by the artists Hans Hartung ( b. Germany 1904- 1989, Antibes) and Anna-Eva Bergman (b. Norway 1909-1987, Antibes).  Hartung was born in Germany and became a French citizen in 1946. In 1973, he moved to Antibes with Anna-Eva Bergman, a painter of Norwegian origin.  The "Fondation Hans Hartung and Anna-Eva Bergman" was set up in their house in 1994.  In 2001, the Fondation made a donation of 36 works by Hartung and 24 drawings and 8 paintings by Bergman, which are now exhibited on a permanent basis.

                                                                       Hartung, 1945

Hartung, 1974

Hartung, 1985

Bergman, Mur d'or, 1974

Bergman, 1956

Bergman, Grand Nuatak, 1974

We went up to the first floor (second story) to see the room with the works of Nicolas de Staël.  He was born in Saint Petersburg in 1914 and in 1943 came to live in Paris.  In 1954, he moved to Antibes where he worked until his death in 1955.  An initial donation was made by his widow to the Picasso museum of Nature morte au fond bleu, painted in Antibes in 1955.  Starting in 1982, the city of Antibes acquired some important paintings from his last period along with some drawings.  We liked his work a lot.

Nu couché bleu

Le Concert, mars 1955- one of my favourites

Nature morte au fond bleu, 1955

We then started exploring the rest of the incredible collection.

Jean Dubuffet- Kowloon, 1983

Picasso, Les Acrobates, 1970, Tapestry 

Picasso, Femme aux pigeons (1966-67), Tapestry

Fernand Léger, Les Constructeurs, 1965, Tapestry

There was a small room with three drawings on the wall by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa (b. Barcelona 1955).  There was a video of him doing the drawings.

Drawings on the wall

Video of Plensa drawing

There was a small gallery with a number of photos of Picasso taken by Michel Sima during the summer and autumn of 1946, in Picasso's studio in the Château Grimaldi.  Sima, whose real name was Michal Smajewski, was a sculptor and photographer of Polish origin who worked as an assistant to Ossip Zadkine in Paris in 1934, where he had first met Picasso.  

During the summer of 1946, after three years in Auschwitz, Sima was living in Romauld Dor de la Souchère's house in Cannes.  Sima arranged for a  meeting between Dor de la Souchère and Picasso who was living with Françoise Gilot in nearby Golfe-Juan.  The curator offered him a room to use as a studio in the Château.  Sima then took photographs of Picasso working as well as pictures of the finished pieces.  They were all in black and white.

Picasso assis sur une meule de pierre, sur la terrasse du château Grimaldi, 1946

Picasso et la chouette dans la main, 1946

Picasso et la chouette, à droite de la Nature morte à la chouette et aux trois oursins, 1946

Paul Eluard, Michel Sima, Blanche Dor de la Souchère, Georges Sadoul, Picasso and Romauld Dor de la Souchère, posant dans l'atelier, 1946

Vue globale de l'atelier avec Nu chouché au lit bleu, Nu assis sur fund vert, La Femme aux oursins, les Pêcheurs et des natures mortes, 1946

Picasso et son chauffeur Marcel Boudin encadrant le Nu assis sur font vert, 1946

Picasso accroupi, travaillant au Pêcheur assis à la casquette, 1946

Picasso assis sur un matelas à côte du Centaure et la navire, 1946

We went into the rooms with the paintings.  All my photos are of Picasso's works, unless otherwise noted.

La Chèvre, 1946

Nature morte aux trois poissons, à la murène, au citron vert sur fond blanc, 28 septembre 1946

Homme au béret basque, 27 juillet 1946

Les Clefs d'Antibes, 1946

Satyre, faune et centaure au trident, 1946

Nature morte à la bouteille, à la sole et à l'aiguière, 1946

La Joie de vivre, 1946

Vase avec feuillage et trois oursins, 21 octobre 1946

Pêcheur assis à la casquette, 3 novembre 1946

Nature morte au compotier de raisins, à la guitare et assiette avec deux pommes, 1946

Nu couché au lit blanc, 1946

Ulysse et les sirènes, septembre 1947 (given to the museum after his 1946 visit)

Sculptures inspired by Marie- Therese Walter donated to the Museum in 1950.
The original plasters were made in his Boisgeloup workshop in 1931 and 1932. 

Céramiques 1947-48

Figure et portrait de Françoise, 11 juin 1946

We went out to the terrace where there were a number of sculptures and incredible views of the water.

Arman, À ma jolie.  Hommage à Picasso, 1982

Joan Miró, La Déesse de la mer, 1968

There were a number of sculptures by French sculptor Germaine Richier (1902-1959)  standing on the ramparts on the terrace, which are part of the permanent collection.

Germaine Richier, La Forêt, 1946

On the terrace

Richier, La Vierge folle, 1946

Sculpture on lower level and the Sea

We had a wonderful visit to the Museum -- Picasso was really inspired during his three months working in the studio at the Château Grimaldi, producing exceptional work.  

We wandered a bit more in the quiet cobblestoned neighbourhood near the Museum.

Among the cobblestones

Very picturesque streets

It was then time to walk back to the Train Station.

Lovely garden in the middle of a square

The train left at 4:50 and we were back in Nice at 5:15.  What a change of pace between Antibes, which has been called the antithesis of Nice, a large city with a population of around 350,000 in a metropolitan area with just over 1 million.

Back at the Nice Train Station

                                                                    Walking by the Cathedral

Walking by tram #1

We went back to the apartment and Alain made cod, green beans, tomatoes and onion with a green salad.

We were very glad we went to Antibes.  The old part of town is very interesting and lively.  We enjoyed the covered market, exploring the narrow streets and the artists' digs.  The oysters were amazing (and SO fresh) and the Picasso Museum is most definitely worth a visit.