Museum of Fine Arts

At around 1860, at a time when Montréal was the largest city in what would soon become the country known as Canada, a group of collectors set up an art association. Its goal was to organize art exhibitions, build an art collection and establish an art school. They started to raise funds to build an edifice for the art collection, the first in Canada. The art association struggled for years to gather sufficient funds until, in 1877, they were blessed with a substantial gift of money, land, and a collection of paintings from Benaiah Gibb.

By 1879, the first gallery was finished and the association began to acquire more paintings, including those done by students at their school of art. This was the beginning of an impressive Canadian collection for this art museum. Several other private collections were acquired in addition to Gibb’s, and by 1909, the association decided a larger museum was in order to house the new works.

Instead of expanding the current building, architects Edward and William S. Maxwell were chosen to design a new one. This museum would have a white marble facade, a high portico with colonnade, an ornate monumental staircase, and “discreet decoration in low relief”, according to original plans. Several large exhibition rooms took up most of the space but there was also a lecture room, library, and studios for art students. This pavilion in Beaux-Arts style was inaugurated in 1912. It was originally named after the museum's largest benefactor, Benaiah Gibb, but is now known as the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion.

A department of decorative arts was added in 1917 and by the 1930s, that department boasted a real international feel – with pieces from every corner of the world. Once this collection was firmly established, it was decided to give the art museum a name that encompassed both the paintings and the decorative art. Therefore, the Musée de Beaux-Arts (Museum of Fine Arts) name was adopted in 1948.

In the decades that followed, more was added to the permanent collection of the museum, including many contemporary works, especially those by Canadian artists. The museum was expanded in the mid-1970s and then again in 1991. The architect for this most recent expansion was Moshe Safdie, the renowned creator of the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa and the Musée de la Civilisation in Quebec. Safdie’s modernist annex sits across the street from the 1912 building and houses works of art from around the world. It features a great sloping glass roof, which adds lots of sunlight to the public foyer. However, the architect retained the 5-story brick and stone apartment building that already stood at the site and integrated it into his design. The pavilion is connected to the 1912 building by an underground tunnel.

Recently the museum started yet another expansion to the adjacent Erskine and American Church. The 19th century church building will be expanded and converted into a pavilion and named after the largest private donors: Claire and Marc Bourgie. The expansion is expected to open in 2011.

The Montréal Museum of Fine arts boasts an extensive collection of artifacts from across the world. Its Canadian and Inuit art collection features Inuit woodcarving, sculptures and paintings. European art is also represented with works from artists such as Dalí, Rembrandt, Picasso and Rodin. The museum also houses a collection of art from North America as well as a collection of decorative arts from around the world.