Экс-ан-Прованс: город на юге Франции

City and commune in Southern France

Aix en Provence (/UK/,/ɛ//k//s// //ɒ̃// //p//r//ɒ/'/v//ɒ̃//s/, /US/,/eɪ//k//s// //ɒ̃// //p//r//oʊ/'/v//ɒ̃//s//, /,/ɛ//k//s// // /), or simply Aix (Occitan: Ais de Provença), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the subprefecture of the arrondissement of Aix en Provence, in the department of Bouches du Rhône, in the region of Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur. The population of Aix en Provence is approximately 145,000. Its inhabitants are called Aixois or, less commonly, Aquisextains.

Aix en Provence is situated in the south of France, in a plain overlooking the Arc river, about 1 mile (2 km) from the right bank of the river. The city slopes gently from north to south and the Montagne Sainte Victoire can easily be seen to the east. Aix's position in the south of France gives it a warm climate, though more extreme than Marseille due to the inland location. It has an average January temperature of and a July average of It has an average of 300 days of sunshine and only 58 days of rain. While it is partially protected from the Mistral, Aix still occasionally experiences the cooler and gusty conditions it brings. Like most of the south of France, Aix en Provence has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa).

The Cours Mirabeau is a wide thoroughfare, planted with double rows of plane trees, bordered by fine houses and decorated by fountains. It follows the line of the old city wall, and divides the town into two sections. The new town extends to the south and west; the old town, with its narrow, irregular streets, and its old mansions dating from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, lies to the north. Situated on this avenue, which is lined on one side with banks and on the other with cafés, is the Deux Garçons, the most famous brasserie in Aix. Built in 1792, it was frequented by the likes of Paul Cézanne, Émile Zola and Ernest Hemingway. On 3 November 2019, Les Deux Garçons was devastated by a fire that engulfed the entire building, leaving the much loved establishment just a shell. The Cathedral of the Holy Saviour (Aix Cathedral) is situated to the north in the medieval part of Aix. Built on the site of a former Roman forum and an adjacent basilica, it contains a mixture of all styles from the 5th to the 17th century, including a richly decorated portal in the Gothic style with doors elaborately carved in walnut. The interior contains 16th century tapestries, a 15th century triptych depicting King René and his wife on the side panels, as well as a Merovingian baptistery, its Renaissance dome supported by original Roman columns. The archbishop's palace (Palais de l'Archêveché) and a Romanesque cloister adjoin the cathedral on its south side. The Archbishopric of Aix is now shared with Arles. Among its other public institutions, Aix also has the second most important Appeal Court (Palais de Justice) outside of Paris, located near the site of the former Palace of the Counts (Palais des Comtes) of Provence. The Aix en Provence Town Hall (Hôtel de Ville), a building in the classical style of the middle of the 17th century, looks onto a picturesque square (Place de l'Hôtel de Ville). It contains some fine woodwork and tapestries. At its side rises a handsome clock tower, erected in 1510. Also on the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville is the former Corn Exchange (1759–1761) (Halle de Grains). This ornately decorated 18th century building was designed by the Vallon brothers. Nearby are the remarkable thermal springs, containing lime and carbonic acid, that first drew the Romans to Aix and gave it the name Aquae Sextiae. A spa was built in 1705 near the remains of the ancient Roman baths of Sextius. South of the Cours Mirabeau is the Quartier Mazarin. This residential district was constructed for the gentry of Aix by Archbishop Michele Mazzarino brother of Cardinal Jules Mazarin in the last half of the 17th century and contains several notable hôtels particuliers. The 13th century church of Saint Jean de Malte contains valuable pictures and a recently restored organ. Next to it is the Musée Granet, devoted to European painting and sculpture. Aix is often referred to as the city of a thousand fountains. Among the most notable are the 17th century Fontaine des Quatre Dauphins (Fountain of the Four Dolphins) in the Quartier Mazarin, designed by Jean Claude Rambot, and three of the fountains down the central Cours Mirabeau: at the top, a 19th century fountain depicts the "good king" René holding the Muscat grapes that he introduced to Provence in the 15th century; halfway down is a natural hot water fountain (34 °C), covered in moss, dating back to the Romans; and at the bottom, at la Rotonde, the hub of modern Aix, stands a monumental fountain from 1860 beneath three giant statues representing art, justice and agriculture. In the older part of Aix, there are also fountains of note in the Place d'Albertas and the Place des Trois Ormeaux. Aix is the birthplace of Post Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne. A walking trail links sites including his childhood home, Jas de Bouffan, and his former studio, Atelier Cézanne. The white limestone mountain Sainte Victoire overlooks the city and was a frequent subject of Cézanne's works.

Aix holds two significant musical events each year. These are:

An important opera festival, the Festival international d'Art Lyrique, founded in 1948, now ranks with those in Bayreuth, Salzburg and Glyndebourne. The director until 2018 was Bernard Foccroulle, organist and director of la Monnaie in Brussels. The festival takes place in late June and July each year. The main venues in Aix itself are the outdoor Théâtre de l'Archévêché in the former garden of the archbishop's palace, the recently restored 18th century Théâtre du Jeu de Paume, and the newly built Grand Théâtre de Provence; operas are also staged in the outdoor Théâtre du Grand Saint Jean outside Aix. Linked to the festival is the Académie européenne de musique, a summer school for young musicians with master classes by celebrated artists. Over the four year period from 2006 until 2009, Sir Simon Rattle's version of Wagner's Ring Cycle with the Berlin Philharmonic was performed at the Aix festival. The current director of the festival is Pierre Audi.

This takes place each year in June to coincide with the national 'Fête de la Musique.' There is a week of classical, jazz, and popular concerts held in different street venues and courtyards in the city. Some of these events are held in the Conservatoire Darius Milhaud, named in honour of the French composer, a native of Aix.

The dance company Ballet Preljocaj of the French dancer and choreographer Angelin Preljocaj has been located in Aix since 1996. In 2007 it took up residence in the Pavillon Noir, a centre for dance performance, designed in 1999 by the architect Rudy Ricciotti. The centre is one of nineteen of its kind in France, designated Centre chorégraphique national.

Aix en Provence was part of Marseille Provence 2013, the year long cultural festival when the region served as the European Capital of Culture. Aix hosted several major cultural events including one half of the Grand Atelier du Midi gala exhibition and an episode of the Révélations pyrotechnical performance. The city also unveiled major new cultural infrastructure to coincide with Marseille Provence 2013, including the Darius Milhaud Conservatory designed by Kengo Kuma.

To the east of Aix rises Montagne Sainte Victoire , one of the landmarks of the Pays d'Aix. It is accessible from the centre of Aix by road or on foot, taking the wooded footpath of Escrachou Pevou to the plateau of Bibemus. It dramatically overshadows the small dam built by Émile Zola's father and was a favourite subject and haunt of Paul Cézanne throughout his lifetime. In the village of Le Tholonet on the precipitous southern side of Mont Sainte Victoire, there is a windmill that he used, and beyond that a mountain hut, the refuge Cézanne, where he liked to paint. To the north, the mountain slopes gently down through woodland to the village of Vauvenargues. The Château of Vauvenargues overlooking the village was formerly occupied by the counts of Provence (including René of Anjou) and the Archbishops of Aix before it became the family home of the marquis de Vauvenargues. It was acquired by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso in 1958, who was resident there from 1959 until 1962, when he moved to Mougins. He and his wife Jacqueline are buried in its grounds,
which are not usually open to the public. From 2009 onwards, the château, which now belongs to Jacqueline's daughter Catherine Hutin, has been open to the public from June to September. Mont Sainte Victoire has a complex network of paths, leading to the priory and Croix de Provence at the summit, to the large man made reservoir of Bimont and to the Roman viaduct above le Tholonet.

Association football is represented in the city by Pays d'Aix Football Club, until 2014 known as AS Aix en Provence. Their best result was playing in French Division 1 in the 1967–68 season, but recent years see the team playing in amateur levels of the French football league system. Rugby union club Provence Rugby (previously known as Aix Rugby Club and Pays d'Aix Rugby Club) is based in the city. as of 2021, they play in Rugby Pro D2, the second tier French league. Pays d'Aix Université Club Handball is a handball club competing in the top level French First League of Handball. American football team Les Argonautes Aix en Provence has won the top level Ligue Élite de Football Américain a total of eight times and is one of the most successful teams in the country. They were finalist of the 1996 Eurobowl. The city hosts a professional tennis tournament on the ATP Challenger Tour. It is held every May at the Country Club Aixois. Former world number one squash player Grégory Gaultier lives in Aix en Provence. The city hosted Ukraine's football base camp during Euro 2016. The city holds a junior fencing World Cup event for men's foil in January of each year. Local fencer Erwann Le Péchoux was part of the team that won the gold medal in men's team foil at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

A set of ancient roads radiate out from Aix to the surrounding countryside, the Pays d'Aix. There are also a large number of modern autoroutes connecting Aix to nearby towns. There are autoroutes northwards to Avignon and to the Luberon; southwards to Marseille; and eastwards to Aubagne and the Mediterranean coast of Provence; and to Nice and other towns on the French Riviera. Aix and Marseille are equidistant from the Marseille Provence Airport (MRS) at Marignane on the Étang de Berre which features domestic and international scheduled passenger service. There is another airport at Les Milles, which is mostly used by general aviation. There is a frequent bus shuttle service from the main bus station in Aix which also serves the nearby TGV station at l'Arbois, in the middle of the countryside about 10 mile (16 km) from Aix. At Aix, the line from Paris branches to Marseille and Nice; it takes about 3 hours to get from Paris to Aix by TGV. Aix also has a railway station near the centre, Gare d'Aix en Provence, with connections to Marseille, Pertuis and Briançon in the French Alps. A frequent and rapid shuttle bus service for commuters operates between the bus station in Aix and Marseille. There are many other long distance and local buses from the bus station. The city also offers a "city pass" available in 24, 48, and 72 hour packages for visiting tourists. The "pass tourisitque" is offered at the Aix en Provence Tourist Office, the Atelier de Cézanne, and the official Aix tourism website. The central old town of Aix is for the most part pedestrianised. There are large underground and overground parking structures placed at regular intervals on the "boulevard exterieur", the predominantly one way ring road that encircles the old town. Access to the old town is by a series of often narrow one way streets that can be confusing to navigate for the uninitiated. As well as overland routes, two "rivers" flow through Aix, the Arc and the Torse, but neither of which can remotely be described as navigable.

The local Aix dialect, rarely used and spoken by a rapidly decreasing number of people, is part of the provencal dialect of the Occitan language. The provencal for "Aix en Provence" is "Ais de Prouvènço" Most of the older streets in Aix have names in both Provençal and French. Aix hosted the ninth International Congress of Modern Architecture in 1953. Aix is the home town of the rugby union team Provence Rugby. It played host to the All Blacks during the early stages of the 2007 Rugby World Cup. Ysabel, the tenth novel of the best selling Canadian author Guy Gavriel Kay, was set and written in Aix. Italian electroacoustic artist Giuseppe Ielasi's album Aix was produced in Aix en Provence, hence the title. This is also the site of an alleged sighting and landing of a UFO in 1981 that is taken seriously by GEIPAN, the department within the French Space Agency responsible for investigating aerospace phenomena.