In Arles, the Luma Foundation is adding to the city’s cultural offer

In this town in the French Camargue region, which boasts both great weather and beautiful traditions, art and culture have been a key part the city’s identity since ancient times. In addition to the lively ferias, which are a favourite of aficionados, the historical heritage of this ancient industrial and agricultural city—a source of inspiration for Vincent Van Gogh—has continued to grow around its Roman ruins and arenas.

The cultural offer of Arles in Provence

The city features beautiful museums, including the Camargue Museum, which focuses on the region’s past ; the Ancient Arles Museum, which features a collection of busts and mosaics ; the Réattu Museum, which is home to the work of the artist of the same name ; the Arlaten Museum, which focuses on life in Provence ; and the Tour de Vallat Museum, a research centre dedicated to conserving local plant and animal life. There’s also the Vincent Von Gogh and Manuel Rivera-Ortiz Foundations and the Rencontres de la Photographie festival, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

Within its glass and concrete walls, the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie is one of the leading universities dedicated to photography. © DR

Vincent Van Gogh fans flock to the galleries of the foundation, which is located at 35 Rue du Docteur Fanton. © DR

An inter-disciplinary platform

The city’s latest cultural addition is the Luma Foundation. The building was designed by the American architect Frank Gehry, who also created the Guggenheim Museum of Bilbao and the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris. Set within a garden, the new building and the original construction form an inter-disciplinary complex featuring exhibition spaces, artist’s residency areas, and a restaurant. Arles clearly takes its culture seriously !

In Arles, it all started with the city’s Gallo-Roman arenas, which are still in use today. © DR