Working at the Drum Café at LUMA Arles: my Monday with Minuit d'Orsay

Hello everyone! I wanted to tell you about the Drum Café at LUMA Arles, where I came back to work a few months later my first visit to LUMA with Greg. This time, I was on my own, on a Monday, with my computer and a website to work on for Minuit d’Orsay.

Initially, I thought I'd stay for two or three hours. I ordered a coffee, then an apple juice, sat down near the entrance and started working. In the end, I stayed the whole day.

Working at the Drum Café on a Monday

I had already had lunch here with Greg on a Sunday when we had been to the exhibitions. The Monday I came to continue my projects, the atmosphere was different. There were people, but enough space to get my laptop out without feeling like I was in everyone's way.

As I knew I was going to be staying a while, I asked if they minded me working here. I was told I could stay all day. Brilliant, that's exactly what I did! 😂

A website to progress and books everywhere

That day, I was working on a website mockup. I needed to spend several hours on it and the Drum Café was well suited for that: a large table, room for my computer and not too much noise.

I talk a lot about the places I love on this blog, but it’s also part of my work: with Minuit d’Orsay, I create identities and websites for independent hotels, restaurants, brands and venues. If you have a project, you can talk to me about it here.

There are books everywhere at the Drum Café, especially around the entrance where I had set myself up. I flicked through several of them during the day, obviously. I always look at the covers, layouts and typography, even more so when I'm working on a website myself.

I was able to stay for several hours without being made to feel that I needed to give up the table or order something every hour. I really got on with the website, so the day wasn't just pleasant, it was also useful.

And of course, I popped into the bookshop

I couldn't spend the day at LUMA without checking out the bookshop. I went in just to look and came away with three or four art and design books. That had already happened to me in the Tate Modern shop, so I can't say I didn't expect it.

I buy a lot of books for the images, but also for how they're made. A cover, a font, the paper or a page with almost nothing on it can make me want to rethink a whole project. After that, they still need to be useful to me, otherwise I'll end up having to choose between my books and my furniture.

Would I come back to work at the Drum Café?

Yes. Not every day, because I also like working from home and in my office, but for a day when I need a change of scenery, absolutely. I was able to stay for several hours, the staff left me in peace and I really made progress on my website.

I had come to LUMA a first time to have lunch with Greg and see the exhibitions. By coming back alone with my computer, I discovered the place differently. And honestly, between the coffee, the books and the bookshop a few metres away, I knew pretty well what I was getting myself into.