Loire en Couleur

Loire en Couleur: Open-air art on the banks of the Loire

Since 2004, the Loire en Couleur festival has transformed the medieval village of Saint-Jean-Saint-Maurice-sur-Loire into a vast open-air workshop each year, during Pentecost weekend. Nestled on the heights overlooking the Loire gorges, this character village offers an exceptional setting for painters who come to set up their easels.

A plein air painting festival

At the heart of the event, about fifty painters set up in the medieval alleyways, gardens, squares, and along the Loire to create live, under the curious gaze of visitors. All pictorial techniques are represented: watercolor, oil painting, acrylic, pastel, ink, drawing. Four emblematic viewpoints mark the artistic route: the Port de la Caille, the Esplanade de la Tour, the Place du Guet, and the Cour du Manoir, allowing the public to discover the artists at work in historic locations.

Street performances and entertainment

Loire en Couleur is not limited to painting. The event is a true multidisciplinary festival that combines visual arts and performing arts. Street performance troupes take over the village with varied performances: aerial circus, street theater, concerts, guinguette atmosphere, musical shows, and original creations. Introduction workshops to crafts (felt, hat making, drawing, screen printing) are offered to children and adults. Guided tours of the frescoes in the Saint-Maurice church and sketching hikes complete the program.

The auction, a highlight of the festival

The weekend concludes with a traditional auction in the garden of La Cure, where visitors can purchase the works created during the festival. Between 24 and 30 canvases are sold each year, making this moment a highly anticipated highlight for the public and artists alike.

An event rooted in its territory

Loire en Couleur is supported by La Cure, a cultural, tourist, and craft hub of Roannais Agglomération, located in the heart of the village. The event benefits from the support of the association Les Amis de Saint-Jean-Saint-Maurice-sur-Loire, which has been working since 1993 to promote the historical, monumental, and landscape heritage of the village. The festival is part of the cultural dynamic of the Roannais region and marks the beginning of the summer season each year.