La Culture: 3 Reasons to Head South

Catch these unique exhibitions in Lyon and Marseille

TUAREG

The extraordinary Musée des Confluences in Lyon invites visitors to look beyond the 19th-century clichés of the mythical Tuareg people – the dunes and camel caravans – to discover a dynamic, constantly changing nomadic community.

Until November 11. www.museedesconfluences.fr

“TUAREG” exhibit. © MUSÉE DES CONFLUENCES – LYON

GOLD

It’s a symbol of riches but gold has also been used in art for 3,000 years. Combining history with contemporary art, this exhibition assembles masterpieces that bear witness to Euro-Mediterranean civilizations’ fascination with the noble material.

Until September 10 at MUCEM in Marseille. www.mucem.org

JACK LONDON IN THE SOUTH SEAS

The Vieille Charité Museum in Marseille charts the writer’s most audacious voyage to Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, Samoa and Vanuatu in the early 20th century.

September 8 to January 7. vieille-charite-marseille.com

From France Today magazine

Jack et Charmian London à bord du Snark, îles Samoa, 1908 © Courtesy of Jack London Papers, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California