Cézanne used many studios in and around
Aix but he finally had a house built for
the purpose in 1902 at what is now 9 av
Paul-Cézanne, overlooking Aix from the
north. It was here that he painted the
Grandes Baigneuses , the
Jardinier Vallier and some of his
greatest still lifes. The
Atelier
Cézanne (July & Aug daily 10am-noon
& 2.30-6pm; rest of year 10am-noon &
2-5pm; 25F/¬3.81; bus #1 or #21, stop
"P. Cézanne") is exactly as it was at
the time of his death in 1906; coat, hat,
wineglass and easel, the objects he
liked to paint, his pipe, a few letters
and drawings... everything save the
pictures he was working on.
Collective cultural life is the basis
of the Cité du Livre in the old
matchmaking factory at 8-10 rue des
Allumettes, a short way southwest from
the tourist office (Tues-Fri noon-6pm,
Sat 10am-noon & 1-6pm; free). Entered by
doorways in the form of giant books
leaning together as if on a shelf, it
includes libraries, a cinema, theatre
space, a videothèque d'art lyrique
(where you can watch just about any
French opera performance) and all manner
of exhibitions.
For a totally different experience,
both visually and conceptually, you can
escape the sometimes cloying grandeur of
seventeenth-century Aix by visiting the
Fondation Vasarely on avenue
Marcel-Pagnol in Jas-de-Bouffan, 4km
west of the city centre (mid-Jan to mid-March
Mon-Fri 9am-1pm & 2-6pm, Sat & Sun
9.30am-6pm; mid-March to Oct Mon-Fri
10am-1pm & 2-7pm, Sat & Sun 10am-7pm;
35F/¬5.34; bus #12, stop "V. Vasarely").
There are innumerable sliding showcases,
showing images related to all the themes
of architect/artist Vasarely's work,
including his "plastic alphabet" and
designs for apartment buildings. But the
seven high hexagonal spaces on the
ground floor, each hung with six huge
colour-wonder dimension-doubling designs,
is where you'll get the immediate impact
of this extraordinary man's work.
And finally, 3km north of the city,
the Oppidum d'Entremont (Wed-Sun
10am-noon & 2-6pm; free; take bus #20
from Cours Sextius) is the excavated
site of the Gallic settlement which
preceded the foundation of the town,
predating the
Roman conquest by more than 200
years. You'll find the remains of a
fortified enclosure, spectacularly
sited, as well as excavations of the
residential and commercial quarters of
the town
