The beast within the mind…

Discover a world of unicorns, dragons, giants, Krakens, griffins and so many more unimaginable imaginary creatures…

This exhibition will be a fascinating experience for young and old, a trip into the mindscapes of history's great civilisations. Don't miss out on this fantastic journey into a world like no other.

What dreams may come…

"Machines on the Island" (Les Machines de l'Ile) is indeed a mysterious concept... It involves massive animals, creatures of the savana or the ocean depths, appearing suddenly in the middle of the city, as if one's daydreams had crossed over into reality…

You will not have to imagine this, because it has been imagined for you. These giant wood and metal creatures will be there, palpable, more real than ever. Evidently, a discussion will be organised to explain the process of creation and to introduce the team of artists/engineers.

This fantastic event is signed François Delarozière and Pierre Orefice working with the famed Royal de Luxe company!

In honour of the Celts.

The Celtomania festival came about in 1989 as an official celebration dedicated to Celtic music, culture and heritage. Nantes and the nearby cities will be ablaze with festive events for two whole months! You can expect concerts, exhibitions and various activities and events.

It will be a great opportunity to discover local performers or bands that have made a reputation in France.

Gorillas in today's world.

The Museum of Natural History in Nantes, working together with the Rennes Espace des sciences and the Palais de la découverte, is organising an expo dedicated to the king of primates, the elusive, mysterious gorilla.

This animal, born out of the African forest, is an important symbol for many faiths and religious systems. The exhibition will be broken into two sections, both of which attempt to reveal the true nature of these fascinating creatures.

Five themes underpin this event: "Brute or BFG (Big Friendly Giant)?"; "Gorilla and man, a common heritage"; "Gorillas and the tropical forest"; "Watching Gorillas"; and finally "Gorillas in Danger".

This last theme will be a stepping stone onto the next section of the exhibition which aims to discuss what is affecting the life and habitat of the gorilla and what the future holds for this awe-inspiring animal.

A garden that jumps off the page.

The Chantenay library will be displaying a collection of art-photos signed Jean Renaudineau for this exceptional "Couleurs et saveurs du jardin" exhibition.

Over 30 works will be on display and all are focused on a bucolic, refreshing theme: tomatoes! The visitor will be drawn into a lush green and red world full of summertime flavours…

The Kunsthalle moves to Nantes…

The Fine Arts museum in Nantes will be presenting its own selection of masterpieces from the Kunsthalle zu Kiel, one of Germany's finest museums which blends ancient and contemporary art expertly.

Thirty paintings and sculptures and twenty drawings were selected to be displayed before a French and German public. The Fine Arts museum has decided to complement this display with a number of contemporary works to echo the 19th century paintings.

An indefatigable attempt to promote music from the margins.

The Europa Jazz Festival is much more than just another anodyne classic jazz festival. Rather than invite once-glorious oldies to come perform for a blasé public, Europa organisers have since 1980 encouraged people to discover a whole mix of music. They have strived to set up a program that is rattle bag of surprises, a musical event which actively promotes new movements and artists rather than simply relying on sure-fire sales.

Instead of being fixed in one place and one venue, as it was in its early days, over time the Europa Jazz Festival has strived to create a 'regionalised' festival. The key to this is a highly-developed promotion and distribution network with strong and long-lasting links between artist, audience and venue.

Europa Jazz has since the 80's managed to create a unique distribution network in the Pays de la Loire and Lower Normandy, so that music can flow from the town centre to the suburbs, from Le Mans to the countryside, from Sarthe to the surrounding region and from the Pays de la Loire to Europe.

A collector with a taste for greatness.

The Fine-Arts museum in Nantes will be dedicating a major exhibition to Gildas Fardel (Vannes, 1906-Paris, 1977), an art amateur who in 1958 made a substantial donation to the museum, offering ten inestimable works.

This was the first time a provincial museum was given the privilege of displaying works signed Kandinsky, a pioneer of abstract art, such as Herunter. The other works were signed Gilioli, Julio Gonzalez, Roberta Gonzalez, Hartung, Magnelli, Poliakoff, Schneider and Soulages, major played on the international art scene.

A unique folklore…

The Espace Faïence, in collaboration with the Breton museum (musée départemental breton) is organising an exhibition dedicated to Breton history.

The round hats, the "bigoud" headdresses, clogs and other "Bretoneries"… Born from a particular phase in 19th-century Breton decorative arts, these are the elements of an imaginary vision that makes up the collective Breton culture.

Le Petit Breton à Malicorne is about a unique and fascinating folklore. The exhibition draws from the works of Hippolyte Lalaisse, and the famous Breton icon created by Léon Pouplard.

The foundations of a city…

The Thomas Dobrée Archeological Museum in Nantes will for the duration of this exhibition become a gateway allowing you to travel back in time. Discover the history of Nantes and the region, from prehistory to the year one thousand.

From the apparition of humans to the first settlement, witness the birth and evolution of a city.

A passion for the picturesque.

Canadian-born Mark Lewis, now a resident of the UK, is first of all a professional photographer - he is also a contemporary artist and an artistic film-maker who enjoys working with themes such as "the urban", art and cinema, and the grey area between film and painting…

In 2003 he took part in an international contemporary art fair, and was chosen to represent Canada at the Visual arts Biennial in Venice in 2009.

Hip hop in every possible form…

Mark Adjei, who was revealed on the "Chut" project, and his acolytes will be offering workshops in a variety of dance styles: break dancing, pop, boogaloo, house dance, new style, rocking, free rocking…

There will be demonstrations on a regular basis on the TNT stage or elsewhere, with an end of year performance… Get creative with your body!

From the 11th century to contemporary art.

Built in the 11th and 12th centuries, modified during the 14th and 15th centuries and again during the Renaissance, the castle of Laval has retained its crypt and all its original defences: the keep, the fortified walls, etc.
Against the walls of this castle, the display of Naive Art makes an astonishing contrast: the castle museum features an international collection of Naive Art including works by some of themovement's greatest names: from Bauchant to Bombois, Vivin, Séraphine and Henri Rousseau (Le Douanier), whose studio is recreated here.

Images of five continents.

Discover over 1,200 animals, 120 species from 5 continents, surrounded by luxuriant vegetation in one of the top five zoos in France, famous for its fantastic shows featuring sea-lions, birds of prey and parrots.
Stunning presentations in natural settings await you during your visit: an underwater view of a polar bear, tiny Chinese pandas, an African savannah for the elephants, a pack of Arctic wolves unique in Europe.
The zoo also offers exciting new habitats such as the Argentine pampas, the Australian bush, the taiga where the Siberian tiger roams, or the miniature Malagasy farm.

Open your eyes and enjoy the trip!

The visit will transport you to the shores of South Africa in company with the Cape penguins, or under the seas for an imaginary journey on our ancient submarine, the "Gulf Stream", for a close-up look at the sea turtles.
Or you could take a stroll in the direction of Bora Bora to admire its multi-coloured fish. No need to take the plane to Australia to enjoy a unique experience with the sharks, either.
Why not stop by and visit all these destinations and many more?

Wonderful memories of bygone years...

In the heart of the Parc Naturel Régional Normandie-Maine, on the fringes of the forest of Perseigne, cycling museum La Belle Echappée relates the history of the Tour de France cycling race and its accompanying advertising caravan.
A unique collection amassed by a dedicated race fan (consisting of famous cycles and jerseys, posters, games, toys, etc.) plus interactive and video spaces with original lighting, guaranteed to recall wonderful memories of bygone years.

The Tiger's lair.

On retiring from political life after the signing of the peace treaties that brought the First World War to a close, Georges Clemenceau rented this fisherman's cottage in 1919.
It is located in the Vendée, the region of his birth and where he spent many summers.
Looking out to sea, the low-lying house has remained exactly as it was at the death of the man known as the Tiger. The entrance is reached by an alley of pines and firs. Each room and each object evokes the memory of this great statesman.

Dinner's practically ready.

La Charmille is a charming introduction to authentic organic farm produce.
The farmers will give you a warm welcome and advise you on local products.
Discover delicious organic vegetables, charcuterie, cider and homemade jams, cheese, dairy products, apples and pears and honey.

Head in the clouds.

Paradise for teenagers and somewhere for adults to relax and enjoy new adventures, Pornic Aventure park is the ideal destination for a successful family outing.
Once the "foresters" have instilled the basic safety rules, you set off to explore the circuits at your own pace and discretion (but always under the watchful eye of an experienced professional).

A tree in all but size.

If you find bonsai fascinating or intriguing, the bonsai tropicarium is the ideal place to immerse yourself in the world of these decorative miniature trees first created by the Japanese. This specialist bonsai grower is highly reputed regionally and in the profession for the quality of his work and the care and attention he devotes to these miniature trees. The staff of the tropicarium are dedicated to their calling, and the bonsai is revered, almost worshipped, here.
What makes the tropicarium unusual is the sheer variety of the bonsais on display.

Not to be missed: from the Chinese elm to the dracaenas by way of the Japanese maple, a whole palette of colours, fragrances and styles await the visitor. You'll come away from the visit with a deeper knowledge of bonsai plants, whether for the interior or exterior. The owners lavish every care on their plants, protecting and nurturing them all year round. They will happily share with you their tips on how to care for your bonsai: watering, growth, feeding, exposure to sunlight, cleaning, parasites and diseases, repotting, warning signs, pruning, temperature and ventilation. The hothouses are home not only to bonsais of all kinds, but also to tropical plants.
A slight understatement perhaps, since 2,000 exotic species are cultivated here. Bamboos, sugar canes, water hyacinths, palm trees, succulents, lianas and other species luxuriate in the warmth of the hothouses. The exotic hothouse, through which flows a stream populated by hundreds of terrapins, offers visitors a glimpse of tropical jungle. The plants under cultivation vary according to the season.

Over 900 years of history.

Founded in 1101 by Robert d'Arbrissel, the royal abbey of Fontevraud is first and foremost a place steeped in history: peopled by memories of Eleanor of Aquitaine, of Richard the Lionheart and the Plantagenet King Henry II, or of the Bourbon Princesses; haunted by its more recent past as a political prison. In 1975, thanks to the efforts of Minister Olivier Guichard and on the combined initiative of the Pays de la Loire Region and the French Ministry of Culture, the abbey became a Cultural Centre and meeting-place, with responsibility for managing the monument's heritage and culture.
The royal abbey of Fontevraud is more than just a monument and museum, however, despite being the proud possessor of the recumbent figures of three kings; it is also home to an original cultural project run by the Centre Culturel de l'Ouest (CCO): exhibitions, debates and religious music all aim to bring the worlds of art and new information technology together, to link architecture with virtual reality, to advance research in the field of imaging heritage.
A centre for heritage-related creation and training, Fontevraud welcomes not just artists in residence but also many students.
Nine centuries of Western history stand here in 14 hectares of parkland: Fontevraud, which is part of the Val de Loire UNESCO World Heritage site, is a fitting home for such activities, which link the exceptional wealth of our culture to modern Europe and the modern world.

Art gallery and historical museum.

The art gallery and museum is divided into two sections:

- The Galerie d'Histoire
- The Galerie d'Art, featuring a selection of 18th and 19th century works on mythological, historical or religious themes and including both landscapes and portraits (C. Van Loo, J.-M. Nattier, N. Hallé). The collection of 20th century paintings offers a panorama of geometric abstract works, from Cubism to the present day, with works by A. Gleizes, G. Valmier, A. Herbin, F. Kupka, V. Vasarely, F. Morellet, M. Jouet, A. Nemours, J. Gorin, J. Dewasne, etc., illustrating all the major artistic movements of our time.