As a festival of photography, “Les Rencontres d’Arles” is an important date in the international cultural calendar. And now Maja Hoffmann, art collector and co-heiress of the Swiss pharmaceutical company Hoffmann-La Roche, has created one of the most important cultural centres in Europe with her Fondation LUMA on a disused factory site of the French railway company SNCF.
The famous Provençal light now reflects, refracts and shimmers in the 11,000 aluminium blocks on the façade of the LUMA tower, which Gehry and his office Gehry Partners (Los Angeles) wind out of a glass base as a porous spiral with numerous angles and twists over eight floors.
In the future, this tower will house exhibition rooms, workshops, research facilities and studios. A cultural production facility stacked at a height of 56 metres, whose future scholarship holders will then be able to look out over the city from floor-to-ceiling windows.
In the historic old town itself with its narrow streets, the silver Gehry spiral is not visible, but as soon as you leave the old city wall, the squat tower stands out from the flat buildings of Arle.
Experience art in Arles
Art in Arles: www.atelier-luma.org; fondation-vincentvangogh-arles.org; Information on a one-hour, free tour of the Parc des Ateliers (French or English) at www.arlestourisme.com/fr/luma-arles.html
Tips from the GO SIXT editorial team for Arles:
Hoffmann-La Roche heiress and collector Maja Hoffmann, to whom we also owe Le Cloître and the Luma Foundation in Arles, engaged the Cuban-born artist Jorge Pardo, who transformed the Hotel L’Arlatan (20 Rue du Sauvage) into a contemporary Gesamtkunstwerk. Pardo designed 1300 pieces of furniture; in Mexico, chairs, wardrobes and filigree lamps were created.
Hotel L’Arlatan. It doesn’t get much more eccentric than that. Sumptuous and harmonious at the same time.
It was only at the end of August that the restaurant Les Piques ou Rien (53, rue Condorcet – Place Voltaire) was opened. Traditional dishes are presented here in a modern way, without losing sight of the flavors, recipes, products of the region.
Above all, however, the dishes are presented in an original way: they are plates of several dishes that you can enjoy with your fingers. It’s all very straightforward! Open from Tuesday evening to Sunday lunchtime.
Modern and at the same time French traditional is our other hotel recommendation: The Les Maisons de l’Hôtel Particulier. It is located in Maussane-les-Alpilles, about 19 km from Arles, and invites you to stay longer.
Car hire in Provence
Provence not only has the Côte d’Azur with its beautiful beaches and azure blue sea to offer, but also the diverse hinterland, where a true paradise awaits nature lovers and culture enthusiasts.
If you want to explore all this and more at your own pace and at your leisure, without traveling with your own car, you should think about renting a car . And in the end, you can start your tour directly from the airport or train station.
The major cities of Provence can be reached by TGV from several cities in Germany. For example, a TGV runs between Frankfurt and Marseille.
