CIEL et TERRE Exhibition 2022
Final season
Until November 11, 2026
The Musée GRATALOUP will permanently close its doors to the public on November 11, 2026. It will not be transferred or relocated.
This page explains the circumstances surrounding the closure, the position of the Les Amis du Musée GRATALOUP association, the achievements of five years of activity, and answers to the main questions this decision may raise.
WHY IS THE MUSÉE GRATALOUP CLOSING?
The closure of the Musée GRATALOUP follows the decision by the City of Chevreuse not to renew the agreement granting the Les Amis du Musée GRATALOUP association use of the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin.
The City has justified its decision by its intention to launch a new call for projects aimed at defining a new “cultural, heritage and civic” programme for the site.
This decision comes at a time when the Museum was experiencing its strongest momentum since opening: growing visitor numbers, new institutional support and partnerships, and increasing recognition of its cultural work, culminating in 2026 with the Museum’s selection to join the Pass Patrimoine.
It therefore brings to an end a cultural project entirely conceived, developed and funded by the association, combining exhibitions, cultural mediation, heritage, educational initiatives and immersive experiences.
A DECISION THE ASSOCIATION
DOES NOT SHARE
The association naturally recognises the right of the City of Chevreuse, as owner of the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin, to decide the future of the site. However, it does not understand this decision and does not agree with it.
The stated intention to seek a new “cultural, heritage and civic” programme is particularly difficult to understand, as these three dimensions were already at the heart of the project developed by the Musée GRATALOUP.
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Cultural, through its contemporary art programme, exhibitions, invited artists and mediation initiatives.
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Heritage, by bringing the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin to life and enabling visitors, in particular, to discover and understand the stained-glass windows created by GRATALOUP for the chapel.
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Civic, through its openness to all audiences, its commitment to education and transmission, its programmes for families and children, and its contribution to the cultural life of the region. This commitment was notably recognised through the Musée Solidaire label awarded by the Département des Yvelines.
The association therefore acknowledges the City’s decision while clearly expressing its disagreement with this choice.
FIVE YEARS OF A CULTURAL ADVENTURE
The Museum’s closure is not the result of a lack of visitors or the failure of the project.
Since opening in March 2022, the Musée GRATALOUP has progressively established its place in the cultural landscape of the Chevreuse Valley and beyond, through a contemporary art programme and an approach to mediation designed to make art accessible to the widest possible audience.
The decision to end the agreement therefore comes at a time when the Museum was experiencing growing visitor numbers, expanding partnerships and increasing recognition of its cultural work.
Lukáš KÁNDL Exhibition 2022 - 2023
The Musée GRATALOUP in figures
5
years open to the public
2022–2026
11
virtual exhibitions available free of charge
≈ 10.000
visitors
5.000+
newsletter subscribers
11
exhibitions
in five years
ALONE
contemporary art museum in the Chevreuse Valley
7
invited artists*
UNIQUE
museum dedicated
to the work of GRATALOUP
* Lukas Kandl, Stella Briann, Ladislas Kijno, Laurette Succar, Antoinette Rozan, Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Antoine Poupel
Innovative mediation
Podcasts, videos, sound creations and bilingual digital visitor experiences
Sound-and-light installations in the chapel
QUESTIONS / ANSWERS
Why is the association not applying to the forthcoming call for projects?
The City of Chevreuse has had five years of the Musée GRATALOUP’s operation in which to assess the association’s project in practice: its results, visitor numbers, programme and cultural contribution to the town.
Under these circumstances, the association finds it difficult to see what a new application could enable the City to assess that has not already been demonstrated over the course of those five years.
The association has now chosen to devote its energy to GRATALOUP’s work rather than once again seeking permission to continue a project that the City has decided not to maintain at the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin.
Is the association considering legal action against this decision?
No.
The association has chosen not to initiate legal proceedings, even though the circumstances in which the decision was handled, as well as some of the arguments put forward to justify it, could have led it to consider such a course of action.
This choice does not mean that the association approves of the way the situation was handled.
The association prefers to devote its energy and resources to GRATALOUP’s work rather than to legal proceedings against the City of Chevreuse.
What will happen to the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin?
The Prieuré belongs to the City of Chevreuse.
The City has announced its intention to launch a new call for projects to define a new “cultural, heritage and civic” programme for the site.
At present, the association has no information regarding the project that will succeed the Musée GRATALOUP.
Will GRATALOUP’s stained-glass windows leave the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin?
No.
The three contemporary stained-glass windows created by GRATALOUP in 2011 remain an integral part of the chapel of the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin, of which they are a permanent feature.
However, their physical presence alone is not enough to ensure that their meaning and history are passed on. Before the Musée GRATALOUP opened in 2022, the chapel had remained closed to the public for several years, and the stained-glass windows had never benefited from a dedicated mediation programme enabling visitors to understand their history, symbolism and place within GRATALOUP’s work.
The opening of the Museum changed this. For five years, visitors were able not only to discover the stained-glass windows in the very place for which they were created, but also to benefit from interpretation that helped them understand and appreciate the works.
After the Museum closes, the question will therefore be twofold: whether the chapel remains accessible, and how these works will continue to be interpreted and transmitted to the public.
Will the Musée GRATALOUP reopen elsewhere?
That is not the association’s plan today.
The Musée GRATALOUP had a particular meaning in Chevreuse because of the exceptional history linking the artist to the town. That history and coherence cannot simply be recreated artificially in another location.
The closure of the Museum therefore marks the end of a place, not the search for another one.
Our choice now is to take the work to new places and new audiences.
Will the Les Amis du Musée GRATALOUP association continue?
Yes.
Until December 31, 2026, the association will retain its name Les Amis du Musée GRATALOUP.
From January 1, 2027, it will become Les Amis de GRATALOUP.
This change reflects the transition from an association primarily focused on managing the Museum to one entirely dedicated to the preservation, documentation and promotion of GRATALOUP’s work.
From January 1, 2027, the association will be able to devote its activities fully to these missions and develop new exhibition projects and collaborations with cultural institutions in France and internationally.
ONE FINAL INVITATION
The Musée GRATALOUP remains fully open to the public
until November 11, 2026.
This final season is an opportunity to discover Between Worlds, bringing together GRATALOUP and Antoine Poupel, and to experience one last time the museum journey created at the Prieuré Saint-Saturnin.
WHAT COMES NEXT?
GRATALOUP’s work continues its journey
The closure of the Museum does not mark the end of the project devoted to GRATALOUP’s work.
The association will continue its missions of preserving, documenting and authenticating the work, as well as developing the artist’s catalogue raisonné and archives.
At the same time, it will develop new exhibition, research and outreach projects and collaborations with museums, foundations, art centres, heritage sites, galleries, universities and cultural institutions in France and internationally.
After five years of bringing audiences to GRATALOUP in Chevreuse, we now want to bring GRATALOUP to new audiences.