Superstition says that it is never a good idea to celebrate your birthday early. Regardless, the Sainte-Croix museum, inaugurated on December 21, 1974, chose the evening of Thursday December 19, 2024 to invite the people of Poitevin to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
Around the big birthday cake, the evening visitors enjoyed a frenetic concert by the Cactus Riders and a hotly contested blind test. The hundred guests were also there to express their gratitude towards this emblematic site of the city.
“A huge boat with a wonderful journey”
Starting with Marie-Jeanne, who still remembers very well the construction of the building under the municipality of Pierre Vertadier. The retiree shows great sympathy with an establishment she visits “very regularly”taking advantage of the many activities offered throughout the year.
Others confide a much more recent memory. “Our first memory here? It was three years ago, during a class where we had to make a work sheet”remember Mathilde and Angèle, art history students. The two young women talk about a “marking arrangement” from their first entry.
A point also underlined for Manon Lecaplain, current director of the museum: “I discovered the museum before interviewing for the position. My favorite work at the museum? This is the museum itself. It is a huge boat with a marvelous course, made up of a maze of levels which offer multiple points of view on the works. »
“Privileged moments”
In 50 years, hundreds of thousands have discovered the aisles of the Sainte-Croix museum. A place which definitely no longer has any secrets for Jean Grenier, museum agent. He, the former concierge, especially remembers the beauty of the multiple exhibitions. “These are times to meet artists. We live special moments”slips the original Corsican, who did not know much about the world of museums before his arrival in 2003.
Conversely, the world of art no longer has any secrets for Charles, a Pictavian and humble collector. The man notably owns works by Alfred Plauzeau. “I would like to donate them to the Sainte-Croix museum, so that they can potentially be exhibited. »
Charles’ donation will then join the thousands of items exhibited or stored in reserve. Among these, each Poitevin necessarily has his own preference. For the mayor of Poitiers, Léonore Moncond’huy, the hand of Eleanor of Aquitaine represented in stained glass serves as a true symbol of the Sainte-Croix museum. Himself, symbol of Poitiers.
The Sainte-Croix Museum is free in December 2024.
