The restoration of the abbey of Beaulieu-en-Rouergue (Tarn-et-Garonne)

The abbey house has been restored to permanently display the Brache-Bonnefoi collection, while the lay brothers' wing is devoted to temporary exhibitions. Reserves are also set up in an adjacent building.

At the same time, major work on the collections enabled the study of the 1 works that make up the collection (paintings, drawings, printed works, sculptures, tapestries, embroidery, etc.), some of which were restored and framed on this occasion. The museum route highlights the collection, but also the monument, its history and its architecture, and unfolds in the salons, the refectory and the monks' room and the monastic cells of the abbey dwelling (363th and XNUMXth centuries).

Founded in 1144 by the bishop of Rodez, Notre-Dame de Beaulieu abbey presents the characteristics of Cistercian architecture. Nestled in the Seye valley, the buildings, distributed according to an immutable plan, are distinguished by a neat equipment, a simple and refined decor.

Abandoned during the Revolution, the abbey was saved from ruin in the 1950s by Geneviève Bonnefoi and Pierre Brache. Their collection of contemporary works of art has guided the current cultural life of the monument.