Who was Jean Leymarie, this resident of Lot, Art historian and friend of Picasso and Giacometti?

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For its second year of Regards Croisés, the Société des Études du Lot, the Université pour Tous Cahors Quercy and Carrefour des sciences et des Arts come together again, supported by the Gambetta Alumni Association, to highlight a Lotois with an exceptional journey or a particular theme of local history.

After Armand Viré in 2023, this time, it is Jean Leymarie who will be the subject of this special day on Saturday December 7, 2024 from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Clément Marot conference space in Cahors.

Jean Leymarie, an illustrious Lotois in the world of the arts

Jean Leymarie is a Lotois whose career deserves to be known to the general public and to the people of Lot. He is unanimously considered in the arts community as the one who took a keen look at the Art of the 20th century.^e century.

Jean Lucien Leymarie was born in 1919 in Gagnac-sur-Cère into a modest farming family. He received a brilliant education at the Gambetta high school before continuing with a degree in literature. Upon his return from military service, war broke out and Jean Leymarie returned to his native Lot. By a coincidence, he met René Huyghe, curator of the Louvre museum and present in the Lot where several of the museum's masterpieces were sheltered. He hired Jean Leymarie at the Château de Montal as guardian of the works. One day unpacking the paintings, amazed, Jean Leymarie had “an aesthetic and intellectual shock”.

Director of the Villa Medici in Rome

At the end of the war, he returned the works to the Louvre Museum, and this was the beginning of a long career in the service of the arts. An art historian, he found himself at the head of several prestigious museums, such as the Grenoble Museum, the Museum of Modern Art and ending up as director of the French Academy in Rome (the Villa Medici) until his retirement in 1964. On his return to France, he devoted himself to writing and gave conferences all over the world. He formed very strong friendships with many artists: Chagall, Picasso, who is even his daughter's godfather, and especially Alberto Giacometti. He was also vice-president of the Giacometti foundation until his death in 2006. He is today buried in his native village in Lot.

On the agenda for the day

On December 7, several personalities from the world of culture will speak to publicize the fate of Jean Leymarie during 7 conferences.

After the welcome at 8:30 a.m. and the presentation of the day at 9 a.m., Cécile Fontanille, great-niece of Jean Leymarie, and Jean-Michel Rivière will talk about the childhood and schooling of the man of culture. At 10 a.m., Enzo Delpech and Charlotte Leroy, from the Musée de la Résistance, will talk about his journey in the Lot during the Second World War, hidden works of art and the journey of the Resistance in the Lot, with the screening of the film “The Louvre War”. Just before the lunch break, Pascale Thiebault, administrator of National Monuments, will explain how the works of art and manuscripts of the National Library were preserved during the war.

In the afternoon, the interventions will discuss his action as a museum curator: the risks of conserving works of art in historic monuments, the museum policy of Jean Leymarie and his support for modern art, his career at the Villa Medici (French Academy in Rome), or his love of art and artists.

A very complete day with different approaches to the journey of a Lotois who really deserves to be known to everyone.

Free participation. Catering possible at midday (€23) by reservation on the website www.uptc-cahors.org

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