Provence by palette: Five-Day Road Trip Traces the Footsteps of Modern Masters
AIX-EN-PROVENCE, FRANCE - september 5, 2025 - A new five-day self-guided tour launches this autumn, inviting art enthusiasts to immerse themselves in the landscapes that fueled the post-impressionist revolution. The route, centered in FranceS Provence region, directly connects travelers to the locations immortalized by Vincent van Gogh and Paul Cézanne, offering a tangible link to the origins of modern painting.
The burgeoning interest in experiential travel, coupled with a renewed appreciation for art’s restorative power, makes this journey particularly resonant. For art historians and casual observers alike, the tour provides a unique possibility to understand how habitat shaped artistic vision. The landscapes themselves become brushstrokes in a larger narrative, revealing the intellectual and emotional currents that propelled these artists beyond the constraints of their predecessors. The tour aims to highlight the contrasting approaches of Van Gogh and Cézanne, both of whom found inspiration in Provence despite fundamentally different artistic philosophies.
Though often described as rivals, Van Gogh and Cézanne’s paths converged in the south of France during the late 19th century. Van Gogh, who viewed art as a conduit for emotional expression, arrived in Arles in February 1888, seeking the intense light and vibrant colors of the region. Cézanne, conversely, approached painting as a primarily intellectual pursuit, focused on dissecting form and structure.Despite their divergent methods, both artists rejected the prevailing artistic norms of their time.
The road trip begins in Aix-en-Provence, Cézanne’s birthplace and lifelong base. Visitors can explore the Atelier Cézanne, the artist’s studio preserved as it was during his lifetime, and then venture to the Bibémus Quarries, a location Cézanne repeatedly depicted in his work, captivated by the geometric forms and ochre hues.
From Aix, the route leads to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, where Van Gogh voluntarily admitted himself to the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole asylum in May 1889. The surrounding countryside, including the cypress trees and wheat fields that feature prominently in his paintings, are accessible to explore. The tour then continues to Arles, where van gogh produced some of his moast iconic works, such as The Starry Night Over the Rhône and Van Gogh’s Bedroom. The final days are dedicated to retracing Cézanne’s favored viewpoints around Mont Sainte-Victoire, a mountain that became a recurring motif in his oeuvre.
A pair of UK nature lovers have taken on the challenge of going on a bare-knuckle bike ride. (Schematic diagram, taken from pexels)
