Arles: Mistral’s Motherland

June 30, 2017

Outside the arena in Arles

I would be surprised if you went to Arles without hearing about Vincent Van Gough. In 1888, Van Gough painted over 200 canvases there. It was in Arles where he "discovered light," which you can see from his paintings during that time, but don't expect to find any of his works there, because there aren't any.

What you will find is a guided tour of the city (“Le circuit Van Gogh”) for 6 euros, where you can visit places that appear in some of his famous paintings. There’s also a Van Gough Foundation, which is a small

Arles is near the mouth of the Rhône River

museum of 200 works by other artists paying homage to Van Gough. That costs 9 euros. There's lots to read in the guide books about Van Gough. Not much, though, about Picasso.

Instead of searching in vain for Van Gough, I chose instead to visit the Réattu Museum, which

One of many Picasso works at Musée Réattu

has works donated by Picasso in 1971, along with a large collection of paintings by local artists, such as Réattu himself. Of all the museums I visited on this trip, the Réattu was the most laid-back and approachable.

Then there's Frédéric Mistral. The Nobel prize-winning poet was born in Maillane, 28 miles from Arles. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1904 for his Provençal poems, and for his work in preserving the Provençal language. In his memoirs, he writes that "since the time of Louis XIV the traditional usage for writing [Provençal] had almost been lost." Mistral used the money

The Rue Frédéric Mistral in Arles

from his Nobel prize to help add to Arles' Musée Arlaten on Rue de la République. Unfortunately, when I visited, the museum was under renovation and won't be open until 2019. It has a collection of traditional folk art, furniture, and clothing local to the area.

Mistral is best known for his long poem, Mirèio (Mireille in French), which is about two lovers, Vincen, a humble basket maker, and Mirèio, whose parents try to set her up with landowners. She runs off to town to pray to the patron saints to get her parents to approve of her

The Musée Arlaten was closed

love of Vincen, but she dies from heat stroke. The poem is divided into twelve cantos, or songs, it was published in 1859, and it took 8 years to write.

The theme of thwarted love could have been inspired by Mistral's experience as a university student at Aix-en-Provence. A young woman named Louïso began writing to him and expressing undying love for him. Unfortunately, he only felt friendship toward her. Eventually, thwarted, she became a nun and died several years later.

In my pursuit of finding a self-guided tour of the Arles catacombs, I stumbled on a showing of Picasso-esque paintings by Denis

Exhibition of paintings by Denis Fuhrmann

Fuhrmann inside a church next to the Arles municipal hall.

Like any self-respecting tourist, you should visit the Arles Arena. The outdoor theater is not as important or impressive. If you've been to Nîmes, compare and contrast the arenas. Both were built by the Romans for the masses. Both still host concerts and bullfights, although the arena in Nîmes is better preserved.