Découverte sensorielle de l’Art en Montagne – 5 jours

Experience art and the senses in the heart of the world’s largest open-air museum of contemporary art – that’s what this star-studded tour is all about. Full board in a charming hotel. Other dates available on request.

Discover works of art installed in the mountains and cross territories with a rich human past of life and work. The works of art give the hikes a purpose, but do not dominate the environment. Thanks to a sensitive approach centered on the senses and the art of breathing, your mountain guide will take you beyond simple observation to follow in the footsteps of two great walking artists (A. Goldsworthy and herman de vries) who see nature as a sacred place where man finds his full place, provided he knows how to feel!

From 09/2024 to 09/22/2024
Other dates available on request for groups.

Day 1: Digne les Bains – Refuge d’Art des Bains Thermaux.
10am: welcome by your mountain guide at the Digne-les-Bains tourist office. Departure in individual vehicles for the thermal baths for an initial easy hike (250m positive ascent and 3h walking time). After a picnic, the hike continues to the St. Pancrace chapel and its incredible panorama. On the way down, we continue our sensory exploration of the famous “robines”, the clay-limestone marl so widespread in Haute-Provence.
4pm: check-in at Villa Gaïa.

Day 2: The Bès valley with erman de vries’ “Sacred Wood” (no capital letter!).
9:30 am: departure from Villa Gaïa in individual vehicles (carpooling) for the Bès valley, nerve center of the Haute-Provence Geopark. A moderately demanding hike (450 m. ascent and 4h30 walking time), with a triple wealth of artistic treasures
artistic, with the “sacred wood of roche rousse”, where herman de vries left his most imposing work, geological, with Le Vélodrome and the Lame de Facibelle, and spiritual, with an Orthodox chapel occupied by Sister Catherine of Catholic obedience…. 5pm: return to Villa Gaïa after a break at the “ammonite slab”.

Day 3: return to the Bès valley with the ruined village of Vieil Esclangon and a new encounter with the works of herman de vries and Andy Goldsworthy.
9:30 am: departure from Villa Gaïa in individual vehicles (carpooling) for the Bès valley (easy hike with 350 m. of positive ascent and 3H30 of walking). A hike with the rhythms of
walking in the footsteps of artist A. Goldsworthy, who visited the site in the early 2000s. We’ll discover a path loaded with the work we’ll admire a little higher up. 3pm: return to Digne with a visit to the Musée Gassendi and its permanent exhibitions dedicated to the works of the two artists we met in the countryside.
5pm: end of your stay.

Price includes: 2 nights’ accommodation in a charming*** hotel in Digne-les-Bains, 2 full dinners based on organic and local produce, 2 breakfasts and 2 local picnics. Supervision for 3 days by a state-qualified mountain leader, specially trained and accredited by the Gassendi Museum in Digne-les-Bains to guide you through the Art in the Mountains collection. Guided tour of the Musée Gassendi, including admission.

The price does not include: Cancellation insurance, expenses within the stay, travel within the stay.