Aix-en-Provence, rich in diversity
The love-story between Aix-en-Provence and the cinema
goes back a long way. Those who live in Aix, known
as les aixois, love films, and the town has always
been happy to lend its urban and natural scenery, houses
and monuments to the Seventh Art.
The town’s richness is drawn firstly, from the
beautiful and varied scenery that has always been a source
of inspiration for all the arts, but especially for the
cinema.
Every hour of every day, and every day of the year, a
particular quality of light in turn illuminates and softens
the contours of hills and the countryside, streets and
courtyards.
The town’s richness also comes from its architectural
heritage, illustrated by bastides or elegant town houses
designed by the architects of the 17th and 18th centuries.
Their gardens and salons are a joy to film-makers, operators
and photographic directors.
With more than 300 days of sunshine
a year, the risks of cancelling filming because of bad
weather is minimal.
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The
C.E.C.D.C.
(The European Centre of Creation and Cultural Development)
The centre aims to enhance the cultural dynamic of
Aix. It welcomes in residence more than 20 cultural
associations, particularly those involved in dance,
modern music, video, multimedia, design and contemporary
circus acts.
The development trends of the CECDC favour a multidisciplinary
and transversal content in a global context which aims
to give local projects a national impact, and a European
dimension in the longer term. In 2003, the CECDC has
most notably supported the Arborescence 03 festival,
organised in collaboration with the Terre Active association.
This has enabled more than 4000 people to discover
the world of digital arts through the involvement of
nationally recognised artists, under the guidance of
Fred Forest, a pioneer artist in the information technology
and communication field.
Moreover, to ensure the project’s success, the
CECDC has used an experimental tool - “le Patio
du Bois de l’Aune” – a venue to develop “multi-centres” of
creation composed of:
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A musical
centre that offers personal support to musicians
through a residence policy which enables creation
in studios or stage rehearsals; |
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A multimedia
centre that is composed of 3 supervisors who ensure
free access to the Internet, support in multimedia
techniques, and management of a multimedia space
dedicated to artists; |
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An image centre that
enables all forms of artistic creation to be explored,
and the production of an image databank of the cultural
activities carried out by the CECDC. |
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Presentation
of the Patio-CECDC’s artistic activities in 2003,
and the outlook for 2004
La Saison Combas – “The
Combas Season”
Robert Combas has delighted the Aix-en-Provence region
throughout the 2003 year. As the artist in residence during
spring at the Ecole Supérieure d’Art, he then
organised a large summer exhibition "Aix pour Aix",
presenting his work. The exhibition was simultaneously
held in 8 cultural sites around the town and the region,
from June 28 to September 28. More than 15,000 people visited
the exhibitions held over 3 months. Moreover, Robert Combas
met members of the public by visiting schools, speaking
with students from the art school and from the graphic
arts department of the Faculty of Arts.
The Instants
d’Eté du Patio
In order to identify the Patio’s
creation dynamic, the CECDC organised
a series of small shows during
the summer of 2003. « Les
instants d’été » aimed
to enhance the current creations
linked with its residents. Between
July 14 and September 23, 7 different
meetings between artists and members
of the audience took place in a
convivial atmosphere with the objective
of mixing the public from the Jas
de Bouffan neighbourhood, with
the exterior.
A
Policy of Collaboration
In 2003, the CECDC developed a co-operation strategy with some of its partners
to stage concerts by nationally and internationally known artists. The cultural
centre, La Fonderie, held a concert by the singer Idir, and by the group Zebda,
for the public of Jas de Bouffan. This dynamic was also evident in the co-production
with the Conseil Général of the Christophe Miossec concert at
the Bois de l’Aune venue in April 2003.
The CECDC has also applied its
policy of openness and co-operation
to such projects as Macadam (in
collaboration with Danse à Aix),
and the « Corps à Cœur » festival
(Preljocaj Ballet Production) and
in the operation « La Parole
aux Jeunes pour la Citoyenneté » (in
collaboration with the ADREP association).
The Théâtre de Verdure
has enabled the CECDC to extend
its collaborations even further.
The « Nuits d’Opéras » in
partnership with the Festival d’Art
Lyrique (Lyric Art Festival) in
Aix-en-Provence attracted an audience
of more than 1000 people, while
the open-air cinema during the
Arborescence 03 festival (27 September
- 4 October 2003) was also popular.
A
Residential Policy
The residential music scheme organised
by the CECDC during the 2003 year
has helped musical collaboration
on a local level by allowing musicians
to meet other artists from the
PACA region. The 75% level of occupation
of rehearsal studios illustrates
the popularity of the programme.
In 2003, the Espace Multimédia
du Patio welcomed the artist Guillaume
Stagnaro in the context of a residential
creation scheme. This resulted
in the interactive installation
of the « Paysages Humains »,
which was presented during the « Arborescence
03 » festival.
A Policy
of Support for Residents
At the « Warp à Vasarely » concert,
held on 23 and 24 May in collaboration
with the Biomix Collectif, the
electronic music culture gathered
together in a place like the Fondation
Vasarely, for the first time. For
two evenings, the Warp label, one
of the most internationally respected
electronic music labels, enthralled
a crowd of more than 2000 people
from both France, and abroad.
In autumn, the « Arborescence
03 » festival, organised
in collaboration with the Terre
Active association, enabled more
than 4000 people to discover the
world of digital arts through the
work of nationally recognised artists,
under the guidance of Fred Forest,
a pioneer artist in the information
technology and communication field.
In November, the « Image
de Ville-Image de Vie » association
in collaboration with the CECDC,
presented the first edition of
the Image de Ville festival - France’s
first-ever architecture and urban
environment film-festival. Designed
to stimulate discovery, understanding,
participation and intervention,
a crowd of more than approximately
1500 people attended screenings
of 50 documentary films, and a
dozen fiction films on the theme
of « Le Bonheur Est Dans
La Cité – Happiness
Is In The City ».
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The C.E.C.D.C.
in 2004
La Saison Combas
The Combas Season continues…
In 2004, the Combas Season will continue to evolve in two directions – an
educational project, and an artistic-orientated “back-to-work” scheme.
The educational project will involve 3200 children from primary and secondary
schools in the Aix-en-Provence region in a huge « drawing project ».
It will be followed by the back-to-work scheme dedicated to professions in the
arts and crafts industries. A ceramic fresco created by Robert Combas will be
produced in the urban Jas de Bouffan neighbourhood.
This original fresco will integrate 200 designs by the children, the result of
the educational project carried out in the CPA schools. In association with the
34 CPA communities, a series of travelling exhibitions will present the designs
that were not selected by Robert Combas, thus grouping together all the children’s
work. These drawings will also be exhibited during June 2004 on the Cours Mirabeau,
during the « C’est Sud 2004 » event.
Multimedia workshops
In 2004, the Espace Multimédia du Patio will run a series of workshops
on the subject of information and initiation in multimedia techniques (use
of the Internet, Photoshop, creation of Web sites) and the computer-aided artistic
programming (Computer-Aided Music, Computer-Aided Publishing) linked with the
local public and associated residents. The workshops will be held at twelve
computer stations.
Electronic Territories
This concerns a European project of creation, broadcasting and support, under
the banner of “Music, Culture and Electronic Migration”, linked
to cultural heritage. “Electronic Territories” will be an artistic
gathering held over three weekends in May-June 2004, attracting artists from
numerous labels including the English label Warp, and other musical and visual
surprises.
Open-air Cinema
The CECDC will run an open-air cinema during summer
at the Théâtre de Verdure, in Jas de Bouffan.
Arborescence 04
In September-October 2004, the festival will again be held, in association
with Terre Active. It will be dedicated to digital arts and electronic music
linked to the theme of « Art, Nature and New Technology ».
The Image de
Ville Festival
For its second edition, the Image de Ville, the film-festival of architecture
and urban space, will focus on the theme of « Cities – Ports of
the Mediterranean.» It will be held from November 6 to 11, 2004.
Site : www.cecdc.fr
L'Ecole Supérieure
d'Art d'Aix-en-Provence
The art school in Aix-en-Provence,
L’Ecole Supérieure d’Art, is an essential
multimedia creation centre.
The school is a centre for teaching art in a town
that has always been influential in this field. It also
plays an important role in the town’s cultural
policies, by its contemporary involvement in art in a
place full of cultural heritage and history.
The school trains artists and creators, highly-qualified
professionals, in order to lead them into the heart
of the contemporary artistic reality and the professions
available in the spheres of creation. By doing
this, it pursues the general mission of higher
education assigned to art schools under the pedagogic
supervision of the Ministry of Culture.
Site : www.ecole-art-aix.fr
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