Berggruen's son, Olivier, confirmed Sunday that his father had died in Paris.

The son of a German-Jewish stationery store owner, Berggruen emigrated to the United States in 1936. After the war, he founded an art gallery in Paris and quickly became one of the leading figures on the international art scene.

Berggruen became friends with artists including Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse and also collected works by Cezanne, Klee and Giacometti.

He gave up his gallery in 1980 to concentrate on his collection, which contains more than 100 works of 20th century art and is valued at up to 1.5 billion euros ($1.97 billion).

Berlin treasure

Berggruen first exhibited his treasures at London's National Gallery for five years before deciding to bring them to Berlin in 1996.

In December 2000 the contract about the acquirement of the collection of Heinz Berggruen by the Foundation of Prussian Cultural Heritage was signed. Berggruen received 129 million euros, calling the sale a "gesture of reconciliation."

The new Berggruen Museum became one of the attractions of Berlin's system of museums. It is still presented in one of the two buildings from the 1850s that the architect Friedrich August Stüler built opposite Berlin's Charlottenburg Palace.

Berggruen kept an apartment inside the museum that gave him access to his collection at all times.

"Every day, I say 'Good Morning' and 'Good Night' to (the paintings) and tell them to sleep well," he said.