The French City of Céret, Capital of Modern Art

"In the middle of a small spiral street lined with sycamores, seeing a tractor-trailer containing masterpieces blocking the city during the set-up and dismantling of exhibitions is part of the charm of Céret". says Nathalie Gallissot, director of the modern art museum in the Pyrénées-Orientales town. “But honestly, it was no longer tenable.” Tucked away in a former Carmelite convent that became a prison in the 19 th century, the small museum with a big history has just reopened after a two-year makeover. The municipal council invested €7.5 million (triple the annual operating budget) to build an additional 1,300 m 2 (13,993 sq ft) of space designed by architect Pierre-Louis Faloci, including a logistics area, a viewing platform, classrooms and a 500 m 2  (5,381 sq ft) room for temporary shows. “Exhibitions have grown in size since the 2000s, forcing us to take down the permanent collection because there wasn’t enough room to display it,” explains Ms. Gallissot. “That’s heartbreaking, considering the rich history of this museum formed…