University of Wisconsin–Madison

France: Jenna Crolla (“We’re not in Madison Anymore” moment)

A wooden door with carvings is underneath a stone archway with carvings on it.
An ornate door in Aix’s old city that is the entrance for a “hôtel particulier”. The sponge-looking rock is from a nearby quarry, and was very commonly used in old buildings around Aix (but its porous nature doesn’t stand the test of time, and it has since been mostly replaced).

Aix-en-Provence is full of rich history in regards to architecture. Like most of southern France, it’s full of ancient Roman ruins if you know where to look. At Place des Precheurs, you can see through windows on the ground to the Roman castle ruins that have been excavated and preserved beneath the modern street level. The Cathédrale Saint Sauveur right across from my university’s main building is composed of three different styles: Romanesque, Gothic, and Baroque, coming from the different eras during which it was built, renovated, and expanded.

Haussmann architecture is what most people visualize when they think of Parisian buildings. It resulted in the widening and standardization of street layouts. This style was adopted south of the old city of Aix, starting with Cours Mirabeau (which is basically Aix’s equivalent of State Street) and continued into the 19th century neighborhood. My program attended a tour that taught us that hôtels particuliers were mansions for the bourgeoise of the past. Due to wind patterns in Aix, they’re typically built North → South. The main building is on north wall which opens to the main street, and has a stunning entrance to show off where the family lives. The hôtels are four stories tall, with small windows for the servants quarters on top. The south wall opens into side streets and encloses any sheds and yard space the family has.

Being from semi-rural Wisconsin, I’m used to HOA standardized neighborhoods where every house is at most two stories tall. Madison’s buildings are much more modern, with more glass and steel than anything you’ll see in central Aix. Living here has given me a glimpse into how previous centuries of people lived, how cities were organized, and what sort of historic preservation has been prioritized in the modern era.

 

Jenna smiles in front of a bush with small white and pink flowers.

Jenna Crolla

Hometown: Mount Horeb, Wisconsin

Major: International Studies

Program: Academic Programs in Aix-en-Provence