Things to do in Provence: The Carrieres de Lumieres
Following on from last week’s blog post, the Benvengudo blog once again explores the heritage of Les Baux-de-Provence with the dazzling multimedia show of The Carrieres de Lumieres. The Carrieres is located in the Val d’Enfer quarry, just 2km from Benvengudo Hotel, which was originally created for extracting bauxite and limestone for the construction of the Chateau de Baux and the Baux village.
Giants of the Renaissance
Featuring from March 6th 2015 to January 3rd 2016 is the Giants of the Renaissance multimedia show. The Carrieres de Lumieres gives president to the masterpieces created by Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael towards the end of the 15th century and start of the 16th. Using a high tech system that combines music and images, these historic works of art dance across the vast walls of rock, the pillars and the ground of the quarry and are reminders of the richest periods of the Italian Renaissance.
The beauty of the Carrieres, lays in the dynamic perspective of the images. The frescos that normally adorn the walls and ceilings of churches, villas and Italian palaces are brought up close and personal, giving you the opportunity to capture the finest details of these pieces that you would not see anywhere else.
You are free to walk around the Carrieres at your own pace, giving you the opportunity to rediscover remarkable works like The Annunciation, The Virgin and Child with St Anne, The Mona Lisa and The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci (1442-1519); The Lady and the Unicorn, The School of Athens or The Triumph of Galatea by Raphael (1483-1520); the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and The Last Judgement by Michelangelo (1475-1564), among many others.
A History of the Carrieres
The Carrieres were made famous by French film-maker Jean Cocteau who fell in love with the beauty of Les Baux-de-Provence and, in 1959, made it the location of his film “Testament of Orpheus”. Then, in 1977, a new project was created. Drawing inspiration from the research of Joseph Svoboda, one of the great scenographers of the second half of the twentieth century.
Svoboda had been working on a scenography idea using projected images as early as 1942 and the huge rock walls of Les Baux-de-Provence served as a perfect backdrop for a new kind of sound and light show which fully involved the audience. For over 30 years, the Carrières du Val d’Enfer has hosted these audio visual shows.
In 2011, the town of Les Baux-de-Provence asked Culturespaces to take over management of its famous Carrières under a public service concession agreement and has been open to the public since March 30th 2012.
Other Events
Short Shows – Jules Verne’s “Fantastic Voyage” – From space to the depths of the ocean and the innermost core of the Earth in a poetic, imaginary homage to Jules Verne.
A tour of the Quarry – A dedicated area is used for showings of extracts from Jean Cocteau’s film, “The Testament of Orpheus”, which was filmed in the depths of the quarry in 1959.
Benvengudo Hotel is a 4 star luxury boutique hotel located in Les Baux-de-Provence. Set in an authentic Provencal country house, its idyllic location offers a perfect base from which to explore this remarkable region in the South of France.
Thanks for reading