Cultural stroll in France…

Château d’Arsac, the vineyard patron

In the heart of the Médoc, in Arsac, a stroll takes a unique turn. Château d’Arsac is not just a wine estate; it is an open-air museum where contemporary art emerges from amongst the rows of vines.

The story is akin to a renaissance. In 1986, Philippe Raoux bought the estate, which was then virtually abandoned. Only three hectares of vines remained. Patient and visionary, he replanted the vineyard, restored the buildings and breathed new life into this thousand-year-old property. Today, nearly 90 hectares produce renowned AOC Margaux and Haut-Médoc wines. But here, the vines do more than just produce wine; they fund art. Since the 1990s, each vintage has contributed to the acquisition of a contemporary artwork. Over time, one of the South-West’s most significant private collections of monumental sculptures has been built up, scattered throughout the park, the gardens and the cellars.

The most striking encounter awaits visitors in the wine cellar, where two works by Niki de Saint Phalle take centre stage. "Le Soleil", an explosion of colour and vitality, radiates an almost childlike energy. Beside it, "Mother & Child" celebrates strength and tenderness through the generous forms that became the artist’s signature.

As you continue your stroll through the sculpture park, other works come into view: the dreamy silhouettes of Jean-Michel Folon, or monumental installations that interact with the Médoc landscape. Here, art accompanies your walk, emerging as you round a vine, transforming the visit into a sensory experience.

Long before the term became a trend, Philippe Raoux pioneered a form of cultural wine tourism in which the vineyard acts as a patron of the arts.

Château Chasse-Spleen: the spirit of a place

A few kilometres from the Gironde estuary, in the heart of the Médoc, Château Chasse-Spleen bears a name that seems straight out of a poem by Baudelaire. It is said that this ‘chasse-spleen’ originated from a 19th-century conversation with Odilon Redon. Beyond the legend, here, wine and art truly join forces to dispel melancholy.

The estate, the jewel in the crown of the Moulis-en-Médoc appellation, spans nearly 135 hectares of vineyards, producing wines renowned for their balance between power and elegance. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot make up these great Médoc reds, crafted each year with the same high standards: starting afresh, adapting to the vintage, and working in harmony with nature.

This notion of constant creation has naturally drawn the owners, Céline Villars Foubet and Jean Pierre Foubet, towards contemporary art. Their conviction is simple: wine belongs to the present, just like art. For several years now, they have been building a collection focused on emerging artists, displayed in the gardens, the cellars and an art centre open to the public, housed in a restored 18th-century Carthusian monastery.

A stroll around the estate thus holds unexpected encounters in store. In the wine cellar, a spectacular, colourful anamorphic painting by Felice Varini transforms the architecture into a geometric illusion. In the park, sculptures by Lilian Bourgeat and the fiery forms of Anita Molinero emerge, whilst Ann Veronica Janssens’ light installations play with air and perception. At the art centre, temporary exhibitions extend this experience. One of the most striking recently showcased the neon works of the minimalist master Dan Flavin, green, pink and yellow halos that transform the visit into a meditative stroll. At Chasse-Spleen, art is not merely decoration but an experience.

Château La Coste, an avant-garde vineyard

As you round a path lined with vines, a silhouette suddenly appears in the landscape: Louise Bourgeois’s monumental spider, which seems to watch over the Provençal hills. At Château La Coste, art thus takes shape amongst the vines.

Just a few kilometres from Aix-en-Provence, this vast wine estate, covering over two hundred hectares, blends vineyards, architecture and contemporary art. Founded by the Irish collector Paddy McKillen, the site was conceived as an open-air art trail. As visitors stroll through the vineyards and woods, they discover monumental sculptures and architect-designed pavilions created by some of the leading figures in contemporary art, from Tadao Ando to Frank Gehry.

But Château La Coste is also a place to be experienced. The vineyards produce organically farmed Provence wines, whilst a modern hotel and several restaurants enhance the experience. Among them, a restaurant helmed by Michelin-starred chef Hélène Darroze invites guests to savour the flavours of Provence in a setting that opens out onto the landscape.

The stroll becomes an ongoing dialogue between nature and creativity. Avant-garde sculptures, minimalist architecture and contemporary artworks dot the grounds like visual punctuation marks. At Château La Coste, the vineyard is no longer merely a terroir; it becomes the setting for a vast landscape museum where contemporary art can be discovered under the open sky.

In Spain…

Domaine d’Ysios, the wave of La Rioja

In the heart of Rioja Alavesa, the walk suddenly takes on the air of an architectural revelation. As you approach Bodegas Ysios, the vineyards give way to a spectacular silhouette: a long, undulating roof that seems to float at the foot of the Sierra de Cantabria. People come here to taste a great Rioja wine, of course, but also to discover what resembles a veritable cathedral of the vineyard.

The building, inaugurated in 2001, is the work of Santiago Calatrava, a master of sculptural architecture. True to his penchant for dynamic lines, he designed a winery whose aluminium roof undulates like a wave. The wooden façades evoke the staves of oak barrels, whilst the metallic ridges echo the mountains overlooking the vineyards. The eye follows these curves as one might follow a church nave, lending the place an almost sacred quality.

The estate’s name adds a touch of mythology. Ysios combines the names of Isis and Osiris, deities traditionally credited with teaching the art of viticulture. A symbolic reference that transforms this futuristic winery into a contemporary temple to wine.

A visit is well worth it for the architecture as much as for the wines. In the light-filled cellars, the rows of barrels echo the building’s clean, geometric lines. The estate’s wines, primarily made from Tempranillo, express the finesse and power of the Rioja terroirs.

The walk takes on a different form: no sculptures or art centres, but a monumental work set amidst the vineyards. At Ysios, wine tasting becomes an aesthetic experience.

Marqués de Riscal: the titanium vineyard

In the heart of Rioja Alavesa, a cultural stroll through the vineyards suddenly takes on the air of a spectacle. At Ciudad del Vino Marqués de Riscal, the eye is immediately drawn to a spectacular building, an architectural sculpture rising from the vineyards.

The building bears the signature of Frank Gehry, a leading figure in global architecture and the designer of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. In 2006, he designed a spectacular complex for the estate, clad in bands of titanium with bluish, pinkish and purplish hues. These metallic veils seem to float above the building like a stylised vine carried by the wind. Set amidst the traditional houses of Elciego and the rows of vines, the architecture creates a striking contrast between winemaking heritage and contemporary boldness.

But the site is not just a bodega; it is also a luxury hotel, the Hotel Marqués de Riscal, whose rooms, with their sloping lines and dizzying proportions, extend the sculptural spirit envisaged by Gehry. Panoramic terraces, a wine bar and a wine therapy spa offer a unique way to experience the vineyard, right at the heart of this architectural masterpiece.

For the estate itself is an institution. Its founder, the Marquis of Riscal, was one of the pioneers of the modernisation of La Rioja, introducing Bordeaux-style winemaking methods as early as 1858. Even today, the wines, dominated by Tempranillo, rank among the region’s finest. In this ‘city of wine’, visitors come to admire a Gehry masterpiece, stroll through the vineyards, and then discover a great Rioja wine.

Article written by Désirée de Lamarzelle, featured in issue 15 of Oniriq Magazine

Translated by Bethszabee Garner