Sylvain Amic appointed Director of the Musée d'Orsay

Born in Dakar in 1967, General Curator of Heritage, specialist of the modern and contemporary period, Mr. Sylvain AMIC began his career as a teacher before succeeding the competition of the National Heritage Institute and entering the career of curator in 1997.

His career in the world of museums first led him to Montpellier (2000-2011) where he followed the restructuring project and redefined the scientific and cultural project of the Musée Fabre in Montpellier by opening it to contemporary art. In Rouen (2011-2022), Mr. Sylvain AMIC first directed the three museums of the city before taking the head of the Reunion of metropolitan museums - Rouen Normandy newly created to bring together the 11 museums of the territory. He notably launched the development of the museum district (2019) and major thematic seasons by organizing the decompartmentalization of disciplines and networking.

Curator or co-curator of numerous exhibitions in France and abroad, notably as part of the Normandy Impressionist festival, creator of the Temps des collections or the annual cultural season La Ronde, Mr. Sylvain AMIC has always been committed to placing the collections at the centre of the work of the museums he has directed and to opening them to art and, more broadly, to the contemporary world.

Mr. Sylvain AMIC also participated in the mission of reflection on «museums of the 21st century» (2016) and co-directed the «catalogue of desires» (2018), initiative of the Ministry of Culture for the circulation of works from national collections in all territories. Finally, he was adviser to the Minister of Culture, Mrs Rima ABDUL-MALAK, in charge of museums, crafts, design and fashion.

At the head of the Musée d'Orsay and the Musée de l'Orangerie, Mr. Sylvain AMIC’s work will constantly aim, as he has done in the past, to reach new audiences and promote, again and again, the democratization of culture through multidisciplinary initiatives with all actors and cultural institutions.

Under his presidency, the two museums will continue the work undertaken to recontextualize their exceptional collections in order to allow the visitor to better situate them in the geopolitical, social and technical changes of the pivotal period that saw them born, based in particular on the creation of the new Research and Resource Centre - Daniel Marchesseau.

The attention paid to the territories will also be at the heart of the mandate of Mr. Sylvain AMIC to strengthen partnerships with territorial museums, especially in rural areas, and multiply the loans and itineraries of works of national collections, notably the most recently acquired, like the current operation launched to celebrate the «150 years of Impressionism».

Finally, the establishment will have to carry out the necessary work to preserve the heritage of the Orsay station and the Orangerie des Tuileries.

The Minister of Culture stated: “Of the six candidates I received, Sylvain Amic distinguished himself by the excellence of his project, his attention to the territories, his remarkable successes when he was at the head of the museums of Rouen, and a spirit of innovation that everyone recognizes. I am pleased, along with the President of the Republic, to entrust him with the reins of one of the most important cultural institutions in our country.”

“I thank the President of the Republic and the Minister of Culture for the trust and honour they have given me. The Musée d'Orsay and the Musée de l'Orangerie are wonderful ambassadors of French culture, and I know that I can count on their teams who have once again brilliantly illustrated themselves with the exhibition Paris 1874 to deploy a bold policy as much in Paris, abroad and in the museums of our territories,” responds Mr. Sylvain AMIC.

Ms Rachida DATI would like once again to salute the remarkable action and record of Mr. Christophe LERIBAULT at the head of the Musée d'Orsay and the Musée de l'Orangerie from 2021 to 2024 and thanks Mr. Pierre-Emmanuel LECERF to have held the interim presidency since the appointment of Mr. Christophe LERIBAULT to the presidency of the Palace of Versailles. In 2023, the two museums broke their historic attendance record by welcoming 5.1 million visitors.