mac

Of concrete, art and light

By Caroline Guiol

Art at the Mac, between city and garden, in and around the highly modern building. A new address for residents of the Bonneveine district © W. Squitieri

© Adagp, Paris / Photo, City of Marseille. In the aisles of the permanent collection (more than 130 works spanning 70 years of contemporary art), a unique encounter between a canvas by Claude Viallat and a sculpture by Toni Grand.

In its immediate vicinity, the unbeatable bronze version of Caesar's Thumb is already catching your eye as you turn the roundabout. The tone is set! Inaugurated in 1994, and since then enjoying a certain notoriety, the Mac, reopened this spring, has successfully undergone a facelift: a new reception hall, a reinvented indoor-outdoor route, a roof terrace regenerating shadow and light, it offers visitors a stunning scenography to rediscover major works. With its shed roof, marble floor, glass roofs catching the sun's path, bays ideal for hanging works, and unique installations, it plays to the fullest extent with the flexibility of its spaces. Originally established by the Cantini Museum, its exceptional collection of modern and contemporary art (one of the largest in the provinces, along with those of Grenoble and Saint-Etienne), boasting a thousand objects, was born from the break with the New Realists. Its reputation will be affirmed on the national and international scene, with temporary exhibitions bringing Mediterranean and Marseille talents into dialogue with renowned artists. Forging fruitful ties with numerous institutions, these will allow it to disseminate its diversity through fruitful loans and collaborations. Narrative Figuration, Arte Povera, American Conceptual and Performance Art, Fluxus, and Supports Surfaces are the strengths of its collections. Its documentation center boasts a collection of some 65 volumes. Expanded according to proposals now including digital creation and video, the redesigned Mac hosts open-air performances in its garden. Dance, music, fashion, and private events vie for space on its providential roof. The scope is broad. Contemporary concerns are explored here. Profiles mix, young people come and go, joyfully attentive to this immersive, playful experience that loops our senses. "Parade," the permanent (free) exhibition, showcases the ambition of its major artists. Maxime Repaux and Frédéric Roustan, associate architects of Bureau Architecture Méditerranée, were responsible for designing this innovative architectural project. This new, redesigned Mac truly embraces the spirit of sharing!