Already a Top French City well known for its intellectual and cultural vibrancy, the southern French metropolis of Montpellier is now fortifying its artistic appeal under the banner of Montpellier Contemporain, also known as MoCo. A new multi-site institution dedicated to contemporary art, MoCo includes the École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, La Panacée contemporary art center and, once it has opened in June 2019, the Musée des Collections, MoCo's headquarters, located in the long-dormant Hôtel Montcalm.
One of MoCo's primary goals is to reinforce Montpellier's position as an important regional, national and global arts center, in particular as a stronghold for contemporary art. However, the city envisions MoCo as something more than just a static institution; instead, MoCo is expected to transform the city through art.
Accordingly, and in anticipation of the opening of the Musée des Collections, MoCo is organizing “100 Artists in the City,” a major summer exhibition that will take place in public spaces – exposition areas, shops, cafes, walls, public plazas etc. Arrangements are being made to map out an artistic trail that runs from the Saint Roch railway station, which is near the Hôtel Montcalm, to the École des Beaux-Arts, passing via La Panacée. The neighboring coastal towns of Sète and Palavas will be involved as well.
La Panacée also has events building toward summer. At present, from October 13, 2018, to January 13, 2019, it is hosting three solo shows: The Vertical (Millésimes 1962-2001), a retrospective of the late Swedish artist Erik Dietman; Chronotopic Traverses, by Haegue Yang, one of the most important Korean artists of the times; and Paintings Without Texts and Stories on the Wall by Nedko Solakov, a major Bulgarian artist. These are part of La Panacée's ongoing scan of the contemporary art landscape.
For its part, the new Musée des Collections, when it opens, anticipates becoming a next-generation art center and cultural driving force in the surrounding neighborhood and city. In addition to show spaces, it will have special flexible function areas that can be used for information exchange and events. These include a poetic garden (jardin poétique), three exhibition levels, a restaurant, a café with a large table for collaborative working and a modular shop. The transformation of the Hôtel Montcalm is taking place under the direction of architect Philippe Chiambaretta of PCA-STREAM.
The final piece of the MoCo puzzle, the École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, is an art school. Its part in the broader plan for this Top French City is to provide the art students who will both take advantage of the works on display at La Panacée and the Hôtel Montcalm, and perhaps one day be the exhibiting artists. Top French Cities is an association of 29 cities, from regional capitals to important towns, that are perfect for young travelers, families and anyone else looking for fun and authentic French experiences that will fit their budget.
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Top French Cities is an association of 29 cities, from regional capitals like Bordeaux to important towns like Avignon and Versailles. They are perfect for young travelers, families and anyone else looking for fun and authentic French experiences that will fit their budget. Most of these cities are university towns with a youthful atmosphere, but all of them reflect the heritage and distinctive flavors of the regions to which they belong. Many are forward-looking too, with historic buildings repurposed to house contemporary art and activity centers like Les Docks in Marseille. Many have created or integrated new, modern museums to contrast with their classical, architectural heritage, like in Nimes, where the cutting-edge Museum of Roman Civilization (Musée de la Romanité) is located across from the historic Roman amphitheater, or in Nantes, where whimsical mechanical creatures are being created, or in the UNESCO World Heritage Site concrete city of Le Havre.