"You're driving two hours to see what?" my friend Kara wondered. A museum in a swimming pool? Bon, d'accord. Whatever.
The French have become experts in taking buildings that were désaffectés and turning them into something amazing. Take the Musée d'Orsay for example. An old train station that the trains quickly outgrew, it is now a beautiful Parisian museum housing many of the world's masterpieces from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. While the artists in the Piscine de Roubaix (not literally IN the swimming pool, but you'll see what I mean) are mostly lesser-known, it's still an incredible venue. The paintings and sculpture were beautiful, and I really liked the collection of pottery by Picasso, but the building itself is un chef d'oeuvre.
Begun in 1927, the former municipal swimming pool in Roubaix had two pools as well as wings for public baths. For about fifty years, it served as the only place in town where all social classes (though not the sexes, until later) mixed. The city closed the pool in 1985, after which, the "most beautiful swimming pool in France," was transformed into what now may be the most beautiful museum. The reception area and temporary exhibit halls were constructed on the site of the former Hannart-Prouvost weaving factory (the North of France is the cradle of the textile industry) and the swimming pool is now a veritable sculpture garden surrounded by the pool's original mosaic tile. The pool's fountain was preserved as well, which although beautiful, made me want to visit les toilettes during most of my visit. The former shower stalls are now exhibit space and the former baths house 19th and 20th Century works of art. The courtyard is a botanic garden dedicated to textile plants, and there is a tissuthèque where professionals and students in the textile industry can consult the museum's textile archives.
If you're a bicycle enthusiast, you've heard of the Paris-Roubaix, or l'enfer du Nord, a hellish race that takes place in April. Easily accessible by métro from Lille, the town of Roubaix is worth an afternoon as well, and it's small enough to visit on foot. There's a magnificent town hall, and just across the street is a belfry stuck behind a small church. (The belfrys of Northern France are UNESCO World Heritage sites). A bonus for you shoppers: just across from the metro stop is a factory outlet mall!
When I got home last night, I e-mailed Kara the pictures, and she finally understood what all the fuss was about. The museum is really impressive, and I can't stop thinking about what an amazing job they did preserving the original space. I wish there were more places like it! Check out the virtual tour. You'll get a good look at the sculpture garden as well as a glimpse of some of the permanent collection.
3 comments:
that looks flippin tight! je veux y aller!
wow - how beautiful!!
~Angie
I love the pool. The mosaics are great. Diocletian's Baths were so large they have been made into a church and a museum. The museum had statuary niches. This also reminds me of a statuary museum in Rome that is housed in an old electrical generation plant.
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