La Boverie

About the museum

The La Boverie building is the former Palais des Beaux-Arts, built for the 1905 Universal Exhibition of Liège on the banks of the Meuse. Designed by architects Jean-Laurent Hasse and Charles Soubre, it draws inspiration from the Petit Trianon at Versailles and is organised around a rotunda topped by a dome. Once the exhibition was over, the site was transferred to the City of Liège.

The city's fine art collections go back to the 18th century, with gifts from private collectors. In 1799 Canon Hamal ceded more than 8,000 drawings and prints, the basis of the Cabinet of Prints and Drawings, and in 1819 Louis-Pierre Saint-Martin gave more than 50 paintings. In the 1930s the city steered its purchases towards modern art, notably in 1939 with works by Picasso, Gauguin, Ensor, Chagall and Kokoschka acquired at the Lucerne sale, which the Nazi regime had labelled “degenerate art”.

From 1930 the palace housed the Musée de l'Art wallon, then the Musée d'Art moderne et d'Art contemporain (MAMAC), until all the collections were brought together in 2011 in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Liège. Renovated by architects Rudy Ricciotti and p. HD with European funds and support from the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, the building reopened in 2016 under the name La Boverie, as part of a ten-year partnership with the Louvre. Today it houses the permanent collections and major temporary exhibitions.

Highlights

• Chronological route over five centuries, from the 16th century to today
• Early Liège painting around Lambert Lombard
• Works by Monet, Ingres, Pissarro, Signac and Magritte
• The nine paintings from the 1939 Lucerne sale (Picasso, Gauguin, Ensor, Chagall…)
• Black Gallery devoted to drawings, prints and posters
• 1905 building renovated by Rudy Ricciotti, on the banks of the Meuse

Permanent exhibitions

• Collections permanentes – Chronological route from the 16th century to the present day: early Liège painting, Monet, Ingres, Magritte, modern works from the 1939 Lucerne sale and contemporary art.
• Galerie noire – A space lit only as visitors pass through, devoted to drawings, prints, posters and comic strip pages; the display changes two to three times a year.
• Galerie des bustes – A selection of sculpted portraits of prominent figures.

Founded

2016

Operated by

Ville de Liège

Admission & discounts

Free admission: First Sunday of the month: free entry to the permanent collections.

Rates for the permanent collections (Black Gallery and Gallery of Busts included). Free admission also, on presentation of the card, for holders of museumPASSmusées, teachers, ICOM members, press and holders of the 365 card. Rates for temporary exhibitions vary by exhibition; the Espace Jeunes Artistes is free. The museumPASSmusées is on sale at reception.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description

Both levels are accessible by lift, to the left of the main entrance; visitors with reduced mobility should report at reception or ring the door to the left of the entrance. Wheelchairs and seat-canes are available at reception. The museum holds the Acces-i label. For the permanent collections there are audio description and tactile interpretations (with the non-profit association La Lumière), sign-language videos, a route for people with intellectual disabilities, and a sensory kit during the exhibition “L'impressionnisme, une histoire belge”. Only assistance dogs are admitted into the galleries.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Baby changing facilities
• Kids’ birthday parties

Interactive family visit on the second Sunday of the month at 14:00, from September to June, alternating with the Grand Curtius (1 hour 30 minutes, €10 per adult and €6 per child under 12). School activities from the Museums Animation Service and birthday parties for children aged 6 to 12. Changing tables are available; children's section at the bookshop-shop.

Getting there & parking

Bicycle parking along the path to the museum. With the SNCB Discovery Ticket, a discount is possible on the train journey to Liège-Guillemins.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop
• Coat check
• Lockers
• Wi-Fi

Sandwich bar “Madame Boverie” inside the museum; bookshop-shop accessible from the hall (break from 13:15 to 14:00 outside major exhibitions). Coded lockers and unattended cloakrooms; backpacks and umbrellas are not allowed in the galleries. Free Wi-Fi for visitors, with the password displayed in the museum.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit