Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence (Matisse Chapel)

The Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence is a 20th-century chapel designed by French artist Henri Matisse. It is nestled in the little town of Vence, close to Nice.

About this building

Officially named Chapelle du Rosaire, this 20th-century chapel in the French medieval village of Vence was commissioned to the artist Henri Matisse by a friend of his who belonged to a congregation of Dominican nuns.

Although Matisse was not an architect but a draughtsman, Matisse worked for four years to create a simple building with exquisite decoration based on tiles and stained glass. The stained glass windows use only three colours: yellow, for the sun, green for the vegetation and blue for the Mediterranean sea.

The chapel is considered the artist's masterpiece, impregnated with his colours and style, and in which some of his works are also exhibited.

Key Features

  • Architecture
  • Stained glass
  • Interior features
  • Atmosphere / quiet space
  • Famous people or stories

Other nearby buildings

Vence Cathedral

The present cathedral was built in 1400, following the footsteps of the previous one which was demolished. It was rebuilt in 1507, after the collapse of the bell tower.

Wikimedia Commons/Kheper

Chapelle Saint-Philippe-Néri

The Saint-Philippe-Néri chapel, also known as the Saint-Philippe church, was completed in 1612, as can be seen on the pediment. It was built by a wealthy man from Nice, Ponce Ceva, who was also responsible for the establishment of the first Jesuit college in Nice in 1607.

Russian Orthodox Cathedral

The cathedral, designed to meet the needs of the Russian colony, was built in 1903 by Préobrajenski, professor of architecture at the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts in St Petersburg, inspired by the five-dome churches of the late 16th century in the Moscow region.
The realization is made possible by the generosity of Tsar Nicholas II, who authorized the construction of the villa Bermond, his personal property, in the park. The domes of the cathedral, consecrated on December 18, 1912, are made of reinforced concrete. The iconostasis and several icons are the work of the painter Leonid Pianovsky. Restoration work was carried out on the roofs and facades of the cathedral between 1989 and 1992. Near the cathedral, a chapel commemorating Tsarévitch Nicholas Alexandrovich, who died of tuberculosis in 1865, was built in Byzantine style from 1867 to 1868.