Museum mergers in France, Belgium and the Netherlands

MúzeumCafé 29.

The introduction of centralisation of institutions are sometimes seen as solutions.

The Musée d’Orsay

Established in 1986 from three fine arts collections the institute thus became a museum of fine and applied arts, as well as photography, from the period 1848-1914. Since 2004 the Musée d’Orsay has been a public institute under the direction of the Ministry of Culture.

City Museums of Paris

The network of municipal museums was developed from 1880. The Musée Carnavalet was established in 1880. It was followed in 1900 by a fine arts museum in the Petit Palais and later by other museums. Today there are 14 museums in the network. By the end of 2012 they will be merged.

The RMN – Grand Palais

The government has amalgamated the Réunion des musées nationaux (RMN) and the Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées exhibition halls into one public institute. Initially the main task of RMN, established in 1896, was to manage purchases by the state. Production and trading functions were added after 1990.

The Mont des Arts in Brussels

The Mont des Arts in Brussels has traditionally been the centre of the city’s cultural life. In 2005 ten cultural institutes formed an association so that the Mont des Arts could become a museum quarter functioning as a non-profit organisation.

Museum by the riverside

MAS (Museum aan de Stroom) became Antwerp’s newest museum in 2011. It stands in the former Bonaparte Dock, renovated as part of a revitalisation project. Its collection derives from the merger of five museums.

The Rijksmuseum

The collections of the 212-year-old institute, contain more than one million objects, a selection of which can be seen in its 200 rooms. Renovation began in 2003 and re-opening is scheduled for next year.