Look straight ahead for a bold, modern building made of glass and sleek white columns, with a dramatic grid-like canopy stretching over its steps-this is the Art Square, or Carré d’Art.
In front of you stands a building that’s a bit of a show-off, honestly-just look at all that glass and steel glinting in the sunlight, like it’s daring the ancient Roman Square House opposite to notice it. But the Art Square, or Carré d’Art, wasn’t always this futuristic. Imagine the year is 1952, and the square is filled with the sound of rushing fire engines. The grand neoclassical theatre that once dominated this spot- with its proud, columned facade-was ablaze, and all that remained afterward were charred walls and a few lonely columns.
Fast forward a few decades, and you’d have seen not much more than an empty shell. In the 1980s, Mayor Jean Bousquet, who must’ve thought, “Let’s do something bold, and maybe confuse the Romans,” announced a competition for architects worldwide. Heavy hitters joined: Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel, and others, but the prize went to Norman Foster, a visionary Brit with a liking for glass and strong coffee.
Foster went through several ideas, even pondering whether to keep the old columns, but the final decision was to move them to a nearby highway rest stop (so, if you see someone hugging a column on the A9, now you know why). With a fresh vision, Foster set out to construct this shimmering, square jewel box-a contemporary echo deliberately facing the ancient Maison Carrée temple across the way.
In May 1993, the Carré d’Art opened, and suddenly Nîmes had not just a breathtaking landmark but a place buzzing with art and ideas. The Carré combines two cultural powers: a museum of contemporary art and the town’s public library, all under its airy glass roof. Built of glass, steel, and concrete, it feels like you’re entering a space station in the middle of Roman France.
Today, if you step inside, you’ll first find the library-a treasure chest of nearly 380,000 volumes, from medieval manuscripts to rare books and modern digitized archives. Inside, you might stumble across a 10th-century manuscript or etchings from Chagall-try slipping those out in your back pocket! Regular exhibitions showcase original documents, and much of the collection can also be explored online. The library crowd ranges from scholars and students to everyday people looking for their next favorite mystery novel-though I hear they’re still hunting for the missing neoclassical columns.
But what sends a shiver of excitement through the building is the museum itself. Startled by the label “Musée de France?” Don’t worry, you don’t need a beret to enter! This museum has been building its permanent collection since 1986, tracking the energetic movements born in southern France: Nouveau Réalisme, Supports/Surfaces, and “figuration libre”-that’s a fancy way of saying artists who didn’t like to color in the lines. You’ll also find works by stars of Arte Povera, like Mario Merz and Giuseppe Penone, along with art that spans the globe, from American experimenters to German painters and Spanish visionaries. There are photo installations by artists like Sophie Calle and Taryn Simon, along with surprises hiding in every room.
If you were here in 2013, you’d have seen Norman Foster himself return to design the 20th anniversary exhibition-imagine the architect personally showing off his creation, probably fighting the urge to rearrange a few light switches.
So as you stand here, the air shimmering with possibility and innovation, remember: in this square, glass and stone, ancient and new, history and tomorrow, all share the same address. Let’s hope the ancient Romans aren’t too jealous-after all, they never had Wi-Fi or a Marc Chagall etching in their libraries!
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