musée Hébert

The museum owed its existence to René Patris-d'Uckermann, the adopted son of Gabrielle Hébert and direct heir of Ernest Hébert. In 1978, he donated the building, the collections, and two rental properties to the French national museums. The building became state property after Patris-d'Uckermann's death in 1974, and the museum opened to the public in 1984. In 2004, the Musée Hébert was attached to the Musée d'Orsay and became part of the Établissement public des musées d'Orsay et de l'Orangerie when that institution was created on June 1, 2010. The museum closed in 2004, ostensibly for renovations, but structural deterioration and escalating repair costs led to its definitive abandonment in the early 2020s. The closure was officially confirmed on October 9, 2023, with collections redistributed to other public museums including the Musée Hébert in La Tronche.

The museum was devoted to preserving the memory of Ernest Hébert and conserving a portion of his works alongside objects that had belonged to him. The collections comprised Hébert's paintings, furniture, decorative items, souvenirs, and photographs. These were displayed within interior rooms that had remained virtually unchanged since the 18th century, offering a period setting for the artist's possessions and works. Hébert, active in the second half of the 19th century, was particularly renowned for his fashionable society portraits.

Among the paintings in the museum's holdings were portraits of the literary critic Jules Lemaître and two celebrated grandes horizontales, La Païva and Madame de Loynes. These works exemplified Hébert's reputation as a portraitist of Parisian high society. The collections also included furniture and personal effects that had surrounded the artist during his lifetime.

The Musée Hébert is permanently closed to the public. Located in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the building at 85, rue du Cherche-Midi remains state property. Following the 2023 decision to close the museum definitively, its collections were transferred to the Musée Hébert in La Tronche, which now serves as the primary repository for Ernest Hébert's legacy. The Paris site should not be confused with this successor institution in the Grenoble area.