Aix-en-Provence Attractions

The Vasarély Foundation lies in Avenue Marcel Pagnol, in the Jas de Bouffan district in the west of Aix-en-Provence. In this modern and unconventionally styled building, some 87m/286ft in length, visitors can see 42 huge wall-paintings - "integrations murales" - as well as some 800 studies by the Hungaro-French artist Victor Vasarély (b. 1908), the main advocate of the Abstract Constructivist school of painting and of Op Art.

The Musée des Tapisseries (Gobelin Museum) is housed in the Ancien Evéché (former episcopal palace; 1648), adjoining the Cathédrale St Sauveur on the west in the Place des Martyrs de la Résistance. On display are tapestries from Beauvais in Picardy which date from the 17th and 18th centuries and include scenes from "Don Quixote de la Mancha" by Cervantes. Musical events are held in the inner courtyard during the summer.

The Cité Universitaire is located in the Quartier des Fernouillères, south of the Boulevard du Roi René in Aix-en-Provence. The foundation of the university with its faculty of philosophy (1409) dates from the reign of Louis II. University institutions are still housed in the old buildings in the Place de l'Université, but in 1950 it became necessary to remove a considerable part of the university out of the Old Town. There are now about 20,000 students in Aix.

The International Music Festival, which is held annually in July/August, attracts large audiences.

This annual three-week festival includes operas, as well as orchestral, choral and chamber concerts. There is also a focus on vocal music.

Informal concerts are held daily in the Théâtre de l'Archêveché and the Cathédrale Saint-Sauveur.

Near the central one of the three fountains on the Cours Mirabeau, rue Clemenceau leads into the heart of the Old Town of Aix-en-Provence. At the end of the little Place St Honoré, rue Espariat branches off to the left and near it stands the Muséum d'Histoire Naturel (Museum of Natural History). Its collections, particularly the dinosaur eggs which were found in Provence, are well known in specialist circles. The museum is housed in the Hôtel Boyer d'Eguilles, a town mansion built in the 17th C.

In Aix-en-Provence, standing to the north of the Fontaine des Quatre Dauphins on rue du Quatre Septembre, the Hôtel d'Arbaud is one of the finest town mansions in the quarter. Built in the 18th C. it now houses the Académie d'Aix and the Musée Paul Arbaud. This collection contains important examples of faience and pictures and also possesses a large library.

On the Place de Verdun stand the palace of Justice, completed in 1831, and the Church of Ste Marie-Madeleine, which contains an Annunciation ca. 1440. The Renaissance-style facade of the church dates from 1860, while the church itself was re-built in 1905.

In rue Celony, not far west of the Etablissement Thermal and outside the town walls of Avignon as they were at that time, stands the pavilion built in 1664-67 for the Duc de Vendôme and reconstructed in the 18th C. It is surrounded by a small park. The sculptural decoration is noteworthy and inside can be seen some 17th and 18th C. furniture and paintings.

The Greeks were probably the first to harvest in the region of Provence during the sixth century B.C.

The region is divided into ten districts with the largest appellation being Côtes de Provence.

In the northern reach of the Provence region is Côtes du Lubéron at the foot of a mountain.

In Aix-en-Provence, the Church of St-Jean-de-Malte was once part of the property of the Commandant of the Order of Malta. Erected late in the 13th C., it is the earliest Gothic building in the town. In 1682-93 it was extended by having chapels added to it. The 14th C. bell-tower is 67m/220ft high. Inside there are graves and paintings.

On the right side of the facade of the Hôtel de Ville in Aix-en-Provence rises the Tour de l'Horloge (Clock tower of 1510), which was erected on the Roman foundations of a former town gate. In 1661 the astronomical clock below the balustrade was installed.