Ôkhra - Écomusée De L'ocre Roussillon — Attraction in Apt

We did their English workshop as a group of adults and it was super fun! You get a lot of information about the history of pigments, dyes and color in general and the different types of bases/binders used to make paint while getting to participate in demos where she will make one of each primary color for you to then use. Then we got to paint with the demo colors, which was really cool to get a sense of what a difference each binder makes in terms of mixing/drying/temperature. Then we got a tour of the factory - a lot of love and care has been put into this place and the people working their know their stuff about local history and art and are enthusiastic about sharing. It's lots of fun, would recommend for groups with children or...

This is a museum that shows you the ochre mining (in video) and the production with a guided or solo tour through the once functional facility. There are watercolors and pastels made on site using traditional techniques that you can buy at the gift shop. If you want to make your own paints and other colors to use, all raw materials and pigments are available for purchase along with a good selection of books, mostly in French but a few in English.

The property is pretty to walk through. Some of the processing was done outdoors in tanks and using water, and you can see this as you walk around.

With the huge number of tourists everywhere, this was a welcome respite. We...

Fascinating and delightful rambling indoor / outdoor museum to the local practice of mining ochre for pigment. The several factory rooms are an explosion of color and tumbling machinery. Besides the history of the mining and pigment, the visitor also gets an idea of how local towns developed and suffered. The art room and gift shop are engaging and half the enjoyment of the museum. The outdoor loop through nearby mining areas is a brief walk through history and charming...