| ARLES AND THE CAMARGUE |
| Arles, an open-air museum |
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| With the Rhone in the north, the Crau Plains in the south, the Alphilles in the east and the Camargue in the west, Arles resembles an island. |
TerreProvence |
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ARLES AND THE CAMARGUE - La Camargue
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ARLES AND THE CAMARGUE - L'arène
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| It has inspired poets and artists, in particular Vincent Van Gogh who lived there between 1888 and 1889. The town has paid hommage to this famous artist and there is much to see and discover. A walk to the places painted by Van Gogh, the Espace Van Gogh and the Van Gogh Foundation will give you a greater understanding of the life of this great painter. |
Since Roman times onward, history has left its footprints in this town and an architectural heritage which is unique in the world. The Roman monuments and history of Arles are protected under the UNESCO World Heritage.
TO SEE:
Van Gogh, after a difficult period of cohabitation with his brother Theo and exhausted by the excesses of Parisian life, decided to continue painting in the Midi. He was attracted to Arles by the books on Provence written by Alphonse Daudet, in particular "Tartarin |
de Tarascon, which was one of Van Gogh’s favourites. Inspired by the Provencal landscape, the people, the town, his painting took a new direction and it is these places painted by Van Gogh that Arles proposes you to visit.
Espace Van Gogh.
In 1889, Vincent was treated in this ancient Hotel-Dieu and today it houses books, the archives of the town as well as the College of Literary translators who hold their conferences at Arles each year. This place was the object of one of Van Gogh’s paintings, "le Jardin de la Maison de Sante d’Arles".
The Vincent Van Gogh Foundation.
A permanent collection in hommage to the painter by artists, painters, sculptors, photographers, writers and even fashion designers. Les Arenes: Constructed in the 1er century for Roman games. In the Middle Ages, these magnificent arenas were inhabited. The arcades were filled in and 200 houses and two chapels were raised on the track and the terraces. This ‘town within a town’ preserved the arenas from destruction. Around 1825, the monument was restored to its former state. Today the arenas are strictly for the bulls and during the festival thousands of aficionados and curious spectactors flock to Arles to watch the Portuguese and Spanish bullfighters. The Antique Theatre, built around BC 27-25 under the reign of Auguste, became a quarry in the Middle Ages, then a fortified space and later completely disappeared under houses. It was not until 1827, that it resurfaced. Today, musical performances, theater and the Peplum Film Festival are held there.
Palais Constantin or the Thermes de la Trouille. These hot springs were constructed in the 4th century under the reign of Constantin. Even though only partially uncovered, they are the largest in Provence. The Place du Forum is a small, pretty, sheltered square from where you can see the Nord-Pinus facade, two Corinthian columns and the vestiges of a temple from the 2nd century. Van Gogh stood his easel here and painted the famous canvas, "Le cafe, le soir". The Cryptoportiques is a subterranean double gallery built at the end of BC 1st century under which was at that time, the Forum. Visit the Monastry and Saint Trophime Church and the Hotel de Ville rebuilt in 1675 where you can linger at the arch almost level with the vestibule. The Musee de l’Arles Antique presents archeological collections of the Arles region from Neolithic to the end of Antiquity complete with mock-ups and urban plans which will help you to better understand the evolution of the town. Displayed are also superb mosiacs from Roman villas and magnificent sculptured sarcophages mostly in marble from Alyscamps.
Musee Reattu, installed in the house of Jacques Reattu, an Arlesian painter (1760-1833) to whom five rooms are consecrated. You can also view Italian, French, Dutch paintings and others from the 16th century to the 18th century, a collection of contemporary sculptures as well as the Picasso Donation of 57 sketches and the famous painting "Pierrot et Arlequin". Museon Arlaten, created in 1896 by the Provencal poet, Frederic Mistral, to which he donated all the money he received when awarded the Nobel Prize for Litterature in 1904. It consists of a major repertoire of the diverse aspects of traditional Provencal life - furniture, costumes, cult objects and restoration of the interiors.
SURROUNDINGS
LA CAMARGUE is nothing more than two main branches of the Rhone delta. An immense, wild space of swamps, lagoons, rice fields and salt marshes. In the south bulls and horses are bred and in the north, rice, grapevines and fodder crops are cultivated. This space is also home to a vast fantail of diversified bird life. The Ornithological Park at Pont de Gau consists of 60 hectares of protected space with numerous walking paths in the middle of the reed marshes. These paths allow you to approach a multitude of bird species, in particular the rose flamingos. Domaine de la Palissade extends over 700 hectares with four paths from where you can observe the fauna and the camarguaise flora.
SAINT-MARIES-DE-LA-MER
Dominated by a fortified church in which lie the relics of Marie-Jacobe and Marie-Salome, Patrons of the gypsies, this isolated village was able to rest in seclusion up until the 20th century. Since then, in May and October, the village becomes a vibrant, colourful place of pilgrimmage, when gypsies arrive from the four corners of the globe. From east to west are immense beaches stretching as far as the eye can see. |
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