On the 3rd of May, French Minister for Culture and Communication Frédéric Mitterrand announced the acquisition by the French State, for the Louvre Museum, of the Pietà with Saint John and Two Angels attributed to Jean Malouel, thanks to AXA’s patronage.
The Pietà with Saint John and Two Angels, probably painted between 1405 and 1410, is exceptional due to its pictorial quality, delicate style and emotional power.
Born in the Duchy of Guelders around 1370-1375, Jean Malouel is one of the most renowned “French primitives”, having spent most of his career in France.
Until now, only two paintings had been attributed to Jean Malouel: the Large Round Pietà, in the collections of the Louvre Museum since 1864, and the impressive Virgin and Child with Angels, acquired in 1987 by the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin.
The AXA Group’s contribution to safeguarding French cultural heritage has amounted to 48.3 million Euros over the last nine years. AXA has enriched public collections with various masterpieces, including the Denial of Saint Peter by Louis or Antoine Le Nain (Louvre Museum), a magnificent Dogon statue (Quai Branly Museum), Nicolas Poussin’s Flight into Egypt (Lyon Museum of Fine Arts) or the earthenware from the Château de Polisy (National Museum of the Renaissance).
The AXA Group, through its AXA Art subsidiary1, is a leading global art insurance specialist, which has been providing for more than 50 years a unique mix of financial and art market expertise to private and institutional art collectors, museums and temporary exhibitions. AXA Art is committed to preserving art treasures, and supports projects aimed at developing new techniques for restoring and conserving important works of art.
“AXA’s commitment to protecting and transmitting cultural heritage is a natural extension of our business as an insurer, which involves not only protecting the individuals over the long term, but also developing their accumulated wealth. Our cultural and heritage philanthropy actions are closely linked to our corporate responsibility. We are again very proud and happy to participate to the acquisition of a national treasure exposed at the Louvre Museum, benefiting to the million visitors of this museum”, said Henri de Castries, Chairman and CEO of AXA.
