Museum
Since 1990, the Pavillon de Vendôme, a 17th century mansion, has held numerous modern and contemporary art exhibitions.
This building was commissioned by Louis de Mercoeur, Duke of Vendôme, as a place he could meet his lover Lucrèce de Forbin Solliès, known as the 'Belle du Canet', or 'Beauty of Canet'. In 1906, Henri Dobler, an art collector, bought the Pavilion and set about having it restored and refurnished. On his death, in 1941, he left it, along with his collections, to the town of Aix-en-Provence in order for it to be turned into a museum showcasing the town's 17th century mansions.
The Pavilion is surrounded by a French formal garden, and its façade, which superimposes the three classical orders, is adorned with baroque atlantes, garlands of fruit and a mascaron, which is said to be the effigy of the Beauty of Canet.
Its collections are made up of 17th and 18th century portraits, Provençal furniture, as well as canvases of the four seasons, exceptional works of Aix heritage restored over recent years.
The museum is classified as historical monument.
