On the occasion of the 29th European Heritage Days, Villa Arson invites people to explore its site, gardens, terraces, history, and architecture—labeled as 20th-century heritage—and especially the connection it maintains with heritage as an establishment dedicated to art for forty years, bringing together a national advanced art school, a contemporary art center, and a media library.
Located on the hill of Saint-Barthélemy, Villa Arson occupies a vast estate of more than two hectares, offering an exceptional panorama of the city of Nice and the Baie des Anges.
This unique architectural ensemble, built in the midst of a Mediterranean garden, includes the former 19th-century residence of the Arson family, now nestled within modern constructions of concrete and pebbles designed in the 1960s by architect Michel Marot.
The reopening to the public, following rehabilitation work, of the 4,500 m² of terraces, a true hanging garden and viewpoint over the city, is one of the highlights of this discovery.
The national theme of this 2012 edition, “Hidden Heritage,” also provides an opportunity to discover the exhibition “To Deliberate Life! A History of Performance on the Côte d’Azur from 1951 to 2011” in an unprecedented way, revealing hidden stories and testimonies from this adventure.
Program (September 15 and 16 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.): discovery tours and guided visits of the site, architecture, gardens, and terraces; a commented route and meeting with performance artists around the ongoing exhibition on the history of performance; discovery of the media library and its collections; interactive model of Villa Arson in 3D images; visits to the art center’s exhibitions and those by the school’s graduates.
Visit ongoing exhibitions:
TO DELIBERATE LIFE! A History of Performance on the Côte d’Azur 1951-2011
BEN SIGNS NICE On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Fluxus
PAN! Graduates 2012 of Villa Arson
September 15 and 16 at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. (no prior reservation)
Commented visits: “Villa Arson, a Historical and Architectural Heritage (and its hidden side)”
An accompanied discovery of the site, its history, architecture, and the current Villa Arson through the missions of its graduate art school and contemporary art center. Artworks created in situ over the last twenty years, signed by François MORELLET, Bertrand LAVIER, Maurizio NANNUCCI, Dan GRAHAM, Siah ARMAJANI, Felice VARINI… punctuate this visit.
September 15 and 16 at 4:30 p.m. (no prior reservation)
“In the land of sunbathing, art practice is a combat sport*”
Commented tour of the exhibition To Deliberate Life! A History of Performance on the Côte d’Azur from 1951 to 2011 by curators Eric Mangion and Cédric Moris Kelly, followed by a meeting with performance artists.
September 15 and 16 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The media library of Villa Arson: a newly renovated space by architect Thierry Lombardi. Presentation of heritage collections and discovery (in small groups) of a selection of artists’ books and rare or precious books.
“An experience of cinema” at Villa Arson
In December 2007, the Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami, invited by Villa Arson, conducted a filmmaking workshop involving around forty students and young filmmakers from the region. Focusing his teaching on the experience of observation, Kiarostami used the location as a film territory, proposing two themes to participants: The Wind and The Door.
Three films are screened during the Heritage Days: the documentary film of the working sessions with the students (45 min), along with two short films resulting from this workshop.
“Villa Arson in 3D” / Interactive Model
A 3D image representation of Villa Arson’s architecture in the form of an interactive model. From its structure and site placement to its pebble cladding, and through various themes like circulation within the building or natural light arrangements in workshops, this model offers a new interpretation of the building.
Animation created by students from the Master in Complementary Competences in Informatics – architecture option at the Ecole nationale supérieure d’architecture de Marseille, under the direction of Jacques Zoller, Jean-Lucien Bonillo, and Didier Dalbéra.
