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RER Europa 2023
A tourist, cultural and ecological journey, low carbon
RER Europa is an afternoon journey exploring five sites across the rural areas of the Cher département.
A shuttle service connects Bourges to Sancerre, powered by biomethane produced from household waste. This mode of transport makes it possible to discover the region’s rural landscapes and cultural treasures while keeping its carbon footprint to a minimum.
Blending tourism, culture and ecology, the experience is guided throughout by a cultural mediator.
01. La Borne
CCCLB x Musée de La Borne 45-min guided tour
Stop in the village of La Borne to discover the Centre de céramique contemporaine La Borne (CCCLB) and the Musée de La Borne!
The Centre de céramique contemporaine La Borne (CCCLB) is a key part of a pottery heritage that is unique in France and across Europe.
Several European nationalities live and work in the village of La Borne, fostering rich artistic exchanges with countries across the continent.
The CCCLB is a cultural and tourism facility operated by the Communauté de Communes Terres du Haut Berry. An emblematic and essential venue on the contemporary ceramics scene, it develops its activities around the production, presentation and mediation of contemporary ceramic culture.
If you’d like, I can make the final sentence slightly more fluid in English (for example replacing “mediation” with a more natural cultural-sector equivalent).
The entire artistic and cultural programme of the Centre de céramique contemporaine La Borne (CCCLB) is co-developed in partnership with the ceramists of the Association Céramique La Borne (ACLB).
The CCCLB serves as the permanent exhibition venue for ACLB members. Alongside this ongoing artistic presence, temporary exhibitions are regularly organised, featuring invited artists and ceramists.
Between Bourges and Sancerre, in a chapel at the heart of the pottery village, the Musée de La Borne invites visitors to discover a remarkable collection of ceramics dating from the 18th to the 20th century.
Each year, a new exhibition is presented. Since 2020, the museum has focused on 20th-century works and unveiled a renewed exhibition design.
Artists such as Élisabeth Joulia, Vassil Ivanoff, Yves Mohy, André Rozay, and Marie Talbot are among those featured.
02. Allons voir !
Barlieu 15-min guided tour / Grange pyramidale 15-min guided tour
For this second edition of RER Europa, Bourges 2028 has chosen to collaborate with the contemporary art trail “Allons voir!”, now entering its fifth edition under the curatorship of Yves Sabourin.
Developed across several municipalities in the Pays-Fort area (in the north of the Cher), the project seeks to showcase the region through a dialogue between artists and sites that reflect the life of our rural communities.
The locations explored range from heritage sites — such as former washhouses or pyramidal barns (inspired by historic Northern European structures and, according to some sources, rooted in Visigothic and Viking cultures from the 5th to the 11th centuries) — to more contemporary settings, such as grain silos. All, however, evoke the activities and landscapes of the rural world.
Participating artists are invited to respond directly to the sites they inhabit, offering visitors a renewed perspective on these places. The close collaboration with Bourges Contemporain helps generate a strong territorial dynamic around contemporary art.
Through the RER Europa, discover two emblematic sites along the trail.
Lavoir de Barlieu
At the washhouse in Barlieu, Martine Schildge invites visitors into an immersive exploration of the world of washerwomen. Along the wall, she installs photographic portraits captured within the washhouse itself, printed on brushed steel to create a soft, velvety finish.
She then lets sheets of aluminium, engraved and hammered with shimmering reflective patterns, glide and ripple across the water’s surface — their forms mirrored once again in the natural echoes of the sunlit water.
Les silos
Passing by the silos, visitors discover the permanent work Polyrythmie, created in 2022 by Claude Pasquer.
Unfolding across three silos aligned along the road descending from Barlieu, the work takes the form of a polyptych that generates shifting combinations of six colours across the surface of the structures.
Joliveau Pyramidal Barn - Laurent Esquerré
Laurent Esquerré presents an intervention within one of the architectural jewels of the Pays-Fort region: the Joliveau pyramidal barn, dating back to 1505.
Once the imposing, ever-present door closes behind him, the artist feels compelled to engage with the soaring timber framework of this majestic space. Within it, he creates a dialogue between a sculpted form – once again shaped from sheets of aluminium and ceramic ornaments – and the architecture itself. The work unfolds as a vegetal and human allegory taking flight, an upward movement toward infinity.
03. La Maison des Sancerre
La Maison des Sancerre 1-hour guided tour
Venez profiter d’une dégustation privilégiée vins et fromages à la Maison des Sancerre !
The La Maison des Sancerre and the Comité de promotion des vins de Sancerre serve as the vital link between winegrowers and the public – the gateway to the Sancerre appellation.
A meeting place for winemakers, a space for exchange and information about the vineyard, La Maison des Sancerre is the key promotional and development tool for the wines of the appellation.
Located on the hilltop of Sancerre – recognised in 2022 as one of the Most Beautiful Villages of France – this visitor centre welcomes guests from April to November to explore the geological, contemporary and human history of an iconic vineyard.
Designed to welcome a wide audience, the La Maison des Sancerre offers engaging activities for both children and adults, tailored to every level of wine knowledge.
Visitors can explore a multimedia scenographic space, stroll through an aromatic garden, enjoy breathtaking views over the Sancerre vineyards, and discover a tasting area featuring a representative selection of local terroirs. A boutique dedicated to wine-related items completes the experience.
A true multisensory introduction – the perfect prelude before meeting the region’s winemakers at their estates.
On Fridays in July and August, the tasting break takes place at a different location in Sancerre.
