Pierre Rosenberg
French art historian, collector, and former director of the Louvre
About Pierre Rosenberg
Born 1936. Pierre Rosenberg is a French art historian, exhibition curator, art collector, university teacher and curator.
Pierre Max Rosenberg (born 13 April 1936) is a French art historian, curator, and professor. Rosenberg is the honorary president and director of the Musée du Louvre in Paris, and since 1995, he has held the 23rd seat of the Académie Française. He was Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Cambridge in 1987.
Early life Born into a Jewish family in Paris, Rosenberg grew up in Lot-et-Garonne and Gironde in southwestern France. He attended secondary education at the Lycée Charlemagne in Paris. He continued on to the École du Louvre, where he earned a law degree. In 1961, he was awarded the Henri Focillon Fellowship to study for one year at Yale University.
Career In 1962, Rosenberg joined the Department of Paintings at the Musée du Louvre as an assistant curator. In 1977, he was invited to study at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. In 1987, he became Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Cambridge. After his promotion to curator, he later became director of the museum in October 1994 and served at this post until 13 April 2001.
Rosenberg was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1990 and the American Philosophical Society in 1997. On 7 December 1995, Rosenberg was elected to the Académie Française, replacing Henri Gouhier. He is also an honorary member of the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno of Florence.
Personal life In 1981, Rosenberg married Béatrice de Rothschild, the daughter of the late Alain de Rothschild. This was Béatrice's second marriage; she married Armand Angliviel de la Beaumelle in 1962, but Armand died only two years later. He was the stepfather of Marie Angliviel de la Beaumelle.
Works Chardin, 1699–1779, 1979, France in the Golden Age: Seventeenth-Century French Paintings in American Collections, 1982, Fragonard, 1988, Collab. with Renaud Temperini, Poussin : « Je n'ai rien négligé », collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 233), série Arts, 1994, Collab. with Hélène Prigent, Chardin : La nature silencieuse, collection « Découvertes Gallimard » (nº 377), série Arts, 1999, Chardin: An Intimate Art, 'New Horizons' series, 2000 Chardin: An Intimate Art, "Abrams Discoveries" series, 2000 Chardin, 2000, From Drawing to Painting: Poussin, Watteau, Fragonard, David, and Ingres, 2000, Only in America: 100 European Masterpieces in American Museums, 2006,
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Important facts
People in Pierre Rosenberg's life
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Frequently asked questions
Who is Pierre Rosenberg?
French art historian, collector, and former director of the Louvre
When was Pierre Rosenberg born?
Pierre Rosenberg was born on 13 April 1936 in Paris.
What is Pierre Rosenberg's occupation?
Pierre Rosenberg is an art historian, exhibition curator, art collector, university teacher and curator.
What nationality is Pierre Rosenberg?
Pierre Rosenberg is French.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Pierre Rosenberg. https://biography.guide/pierre-rosenberg/
MLA: "Pierre Rosenberg." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/pierre-rosenberg/.
Chicago: "Pierre Rosenberg." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/pierre-rosenberg/.
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