The Beneteau Foundation has launched the Musée virtuel de la plaisance online, with the aim of providing access to visual and audiovisual archives retracing France's nautical development since the 1950s. Free and open to all, it is aimed at amateurs, professionals and enthusiasts of maritime history.
A project to preserve our maritime heritage
Since 2018, the Beneteau Foundation has launched an initiative to digitize its iconographic archives, including the Beneteau and Jeanneau collections, as well as the acquisition of the Guy Lévêque collection, a maritime photographer. The project also brings together documents from the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BNF), the Musée national de la Marine and the Institut national du patrimoine. In all, more than 70,000 photos and 984 videos make up this collection, enriched by 500 author photographs and 40 archive videos from INA.
Visual documentation detailing the evolution of yachting
The content covers several decades of evolution in nautical practices and technologies (so far from 1950 to 2000), including the first production boat models, the creation of marinas, and the organization of races such as the Route du Rhum and the Solitaire du Figaro. The site is structured in chronological and thematic stages to facilitate exploration, with photographic archives signed by specialist authors such as Guy Lévêque, Philippe Plisson and Gilles Martin-Raget.
An evolving, participatory online museum
The Beneteau Foundation invites yachting professionals and amateurs alike to contribute to the museum's content by adding testimonials, photographs and videos. This participation makes the museum interactive and broadens the documentary base. The data added is integrated to further document the human, technological and cultural aspects of yachting.
A conservation and nautical education initiative
The Beneteau Foundation, founded in 2005 and transformed into an endowment fund in 2020, aims to enhance and preserve France's nautical heritage. In addition to its conservation projects, it supports educational initiatives and promotes architecture and nautical design competitions. The Musée virtuel de la plaisance is the culmination of several years' work to make this heritage accessible.
