After waking up early in Arbresle, I left via train for Lyon, where, after arrival, I then departed for Nimes on the TGV. An hour later, I arrived in Nimes, ready to embrace the warm sunshine, olive groves and abundance of seafood. Nimes is located in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France and is famous for its Roman ruins, most notably the Colosseum and Maison Carrée. The Maison Carrée, a Roman temple built circa 20 B.C.E, is often studied by art history students like myself because it remains largely intact and is a paradigm of the Etruscan and classical Greek influences on Roman architecture. Today, however, I was viewing the Maison Carrée from another angle, noticing how this historic site influenced Sir Norman Foster when he designed the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes (Musée d'Art Contemporain de Nîmes), which is located in the Place de la Maison Carrée only three hundred feet away from the temple’s doors.
The museum (finished in 1993) houses art from the 1960’s to the present, showcasing approximately 250 works of art in its permanent collection. Like many modern structures I have seen in France, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is linked to older styles of architecture, attempting to bridge the gap between modernism and historic tradition. Sir Norman Foster underscored this balance between the modern and the ancient when he described his design for the site, stating “the challenge was to relate the new to the old, but at the same time to create a building that represents its own age with integrity.” The design of the museum is very classical, with a large portico, supporting white columns and a rectangular foundation – three principle elements of Roman architecture that are seen in the Maison Carrée. Foster also continues this classical influence into the museum’s interior mainly through the large staircase centered in the building. Though it is not in the exterior, this staircase is similar to that found on the entrance into the Maison Carrée, both of which lead visitors to the heart of the buildings (one being an art gallery and the other being a temple). Yet, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is not simply a replica of Maison Carrée. The museum’s design is more of a response to Roman architecture expressed through modern architectural forms. Unlike the solid, heavy appearance of Maison Carrée, Foster’s museum is lighter, primarily using glass and steel (painted white) throughout the entire building to create a sense of transparency. Foster also plays with light with the steel beams that cast shadows over the museum’s flat, glass façade. As a result, the Museum of Contemporary Art at Nimes is a unique and important site because reveals a different side of modern architecture, one in which the focus is to redefine older architectural forms instead of creating new ones.

-Ian
Philip Johnson Glass House Intern