Marseille is changing, moving, evolving. But some, better than others, have captured its soul. The exhibition “Marseille vue par les Detaille – 164 ans de photos”, presented at the Musée d’Histoire de Marseille from October 31 2025 to October 31 2026, reveals 164 years of history through the lens of a single family – the Detaille. Three generations of Marseilles photographers, from 1860 to the present day, have immortalized the city in all its transformations. From the Old Port to the Canebière, from bustling markets to major urban upheavals, through their photographs, Marseille is transformed without ever betraying itself – a city in motion, yet true to its soul .
A Marseilles dynasty behind the lens
It all began at 77 La Canebière, in the studio founded by Nadar, a pioneer of French photography. When Nadar left in 1903, his first assistant, Fernand Detaille, took over and developed a deeply human style, capturing the daily life of Marseillais with sensitivity and accuracy. His son Albert, trained at the Beaux-Arts, injected a more poetic and artistic dimension, while Gérard, the grandson, modernized the approach and techniques, paving the way for contemporary photography.
In 2021, the City of Marseille acquired the Detaille collection, a heritage treasure trove of tens of thousands of images, testifying to over a century and a half of the city’s visual history.
Marseille vue par les Detaille – an exhibition of 164 years of photos to (re)see Marseille in a new light
The exhibition showcases a selection of rare, sometimes unpublished, photographs from the Detaille family’s extensive holdings, acquired by the City of Marseille in 2021. Through these images, we rediscover the emblematic sites of the city of Marseille – the Old Port, the Canebière, the popular markets – as well as its major urban and architectural transformations, between tradition and modernity.
The exhibition also explores the evolution of photographic techniques, from black & white to digital, and highlights the central role of the Canebière studio, the creative heart of the dynasty.
Open free of charge from Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 6pm, at the Musée d’Histoire de Marseille, this exhibition offers a poetic and historical immersion in the city as seen, loved and told by three generations of Marseilles photographers.