211116-LUMA-PPAYSAGER-ADRIANDEWEERDT-11 - Large

Credits

La Grande Halle, a former SNCF railway workshop renovated by architect Annabelle Selldorf, now hosts exhibitions, cultural events, and artistic installations.
© Adrian Deweerdt

La Grande Halle

A former ironworks, this industrial cathedral was renamed La Grande Halle after its renovation by Moatti–Rivière Architects.

History and initial purpose

An ironworks typical of industrial architecture

Built between 1888 and 1894, this 5,000-square-meter building is a former ironworks in which steam locomotives were built and repaired. This activity requires powerful means of handling, such as the lifting of locomotive boilers, which explains the building volume (120m long, 40m wide, 17.5m high) and its equipment with bridge cranes.

It is an architecture based on utilitarian principles that give priority to technical and economic requirements over aesthetic research. This building is the largest still standing on the site of the former SNCF workshops.

Building renovation

The building was restored in 2007 by Moatti–Rivière Architects.

The ironworks was bought by the PACA region in the early 2000s. Moatti & Rivière won the architectural competition launched in 2005 and undertook the ambitious rehabilitation of that industrial cathedral with the aim of turning it into a cultural center linked to new technologies in the fields of multimedia creation, digital image, and the virtual.

The transformation of the building, which was completed in 2007, included the replacement of the façade with a glass wall covered with a 52-ton steel sheet panel, in a nod to the railway network and history of iron workers.

Today

La Grande Halle is now one of the historic buildings of the Parc des Ateliers operated by LUMA Arles.

More than 2,000 square meters of solar panels were installed on the southern part of the roof and produce part of the energy needed to run the site.

For several years now, this unconditioned, covered hall has been hosting LUMA Arles’ exhibitions and cultural events in its central nave.

Exhibitions and events at La Grande Halle

In 2012, Doug Aitken presented Altered Earth: Arles, City of Moving Images.

In 2017, La Grande Halle featured several major exhibitions and events: Visible World by Peter Fischli and David Weiss; The Early Years: 1970–1983. Archive Project #1 by Annie Leibovitz; the symposium Curating After Globalization: Roadmaps for the Present with CCS Bard College; as well as Architect for Better Days by Jean Prouvé and Love Is the Message, the Message Is Death by Arthur Jafa.

In 2018, La Grande Halle presented Such a Morning by Amar Kanwar; A Story with Vincent by Lili Gavin; Pixel Forest by Pipilotti Rist; along with APEX and Love Is the Message, the Message Is Death by Arthur Jafa.
In 2019, the immersive installation Enclosure by Rachel Rose transformed the space into a sensory landscape.

In 2021, La Grande Halle unveiled After UUmwelt by Pierre Huyghe and a tribute to Etel Adnan with The Arab Apocalypse.

The year 2022 was marked by Live Evil by Arthur Jafa, followed by Moby Dick; or, The Whale by Wu Tsang and maɬni – towards the ocean, towards the shore by Sky Hopinka.

In 2023, Theaster Gates transformed La Grande Halle with Min | Mon, before developing in 2024 Le chant du centre, accompanied by a public conversation between William Kentridge and Homi K. Bhabha.

The 2025 program presents The Nine Jewelled Deer and I Am the Hymns of the New Temples by Wael Shawky, followed by the mini sporting theme park MISSION FRISSON.

Pictures of La Grande Halle

Credits

In 2017, La Grande Halle hosted The Early Years, 1970–1983: Archive Project #1 by artist Annie Leibovitz. Featuring over 2,500 photographs, this retrospective explored the beginnings of the photographer’s career, from her reportage work for Rolling Stone to her iconic portraits of figures from the American counterculture.
© Victor & Simon

Credits

La Grande Halle is more than just an exhibition space — it also hosts concerts, talks, screenings, gatherings, and a variety of public events year-round.
© Victor & Simon

019_Pipilotti_Rist_-_Sip_my_Ocean_Installation_images_credit-Anna_Kucera_300dpi_30cm

Credits

In 2018, La Grande Halle hosted Pixel Forest, an immersive installation by Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist. Made up of 3,000 LEDs encased in resin shells, the work transformed the space into a luminous, sensory landscape, blurring the lines between image, light, and environment.
© Anna Kucera

Credits

A glimpse of the Grande Halle, often nicknamed the "iron cathedral" for its striking metal framework.
The photo shows several of Jean Prouvé’s demountable houses, featured in an exhibition dedicated to his work held between 2017 and 2018.
© Victor & Simon

20190523_LUMADAYS_DAY04_RACHEL ROSE VERNISSAGE_UZ_6188JOANA LUZ-1

Credits

La Grande Halle in 2019, during Enclosure, an exhibition by artist Rachel Rose. Presented as part of LUMA Arles’ program, this immersive installation combined video, sound, and architecture to explore the origins of capitalism through a fictional narrative set in 17th-century England.
© Victor & Simon

Credits

During a landmark exhibition at LUMA Arles in 2017–2018, eight of architect Jean Prouvé’s demountable houses were on display. Designed to be functional, transportable, and easy to assemble, these iconic structures reflect the architect’s spirit of social and technical innovation. With its vast, open spaces, La Grande Halle offered an ideal setting for showcasing works of this scale.
© Victor & Simon

Credits

With its generous proportions and adaptable design, La Grande Halle provides an ideal setting for the presentation of concerts.
© Victor & Simon

Credits

The aluminum claustra of La Grande Halle is inspired by the layout of railway networks and pays tribute to the site's industrial and working-class history. Its openwork pattern creates a dialogue between contemporary architecture and industrial heritage.
© Adrian Deweerdt