Bernard Gantner was born in Belfort in eastern France. After his studies in Belfort, Gantner left for Paris in 1945 to study in the School of Fine Arts, during which he had absorbed greatly from great museums in Paris and the city culture. Gantner's was noticed by the renowned art critic Roger Marx in the late 50s. In 1952, Gantner’s work was exhibited in Galerie Saint Placide. He won the Prix de la Critique in 1961. Began in 1970, Gantner's Retrospecticve Exhibition had been held in the Musée des Unterlinden in Colmar, France, the Musée de Sochaux and Musée de Vesoul. In 1993, Le Museé Gantner was founded in Lachapelle-sous-Chaux, the area next to Belfort. Other than Le Musée Gantner, Gantner’s work was collected by Victoria & Albert Musuem, Musée d'art moderne et contemporain de Strasbourg, Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de Paris and Tokyo Central Art Museum.