This little plaque is way too small to honor the man. Robert Laurent-Vibert was a very successful young entrepeneur when he discovered this castle in Lourmarin, about to be sold for the stone. He took the raw bones of the castle and lovingly restored the building and improved it. A lover of the arts, he created a foundation for young artists who could come to the castle to practice their art without the usual worries that profession. Located well away from expenses and worries about lodging and the next meal, these artists could flourish.
Upon his tragic death in a car accident, at 41, he left the castle and the foundation to the "Academie des Sciences, Agriculture, Arts et Belles Lettres of Aix-en Provence, which has kept his dream alive and operates the castle and its tours to help support the foundation. There were artists in residence and a show inside. The castle has been restored to reflect the different ways that it looked over the centuries. He was a wonderful man, who made his fortune selling the French equivalent of our Brylcream, after being an archaelogist. All in 41 years. Yikes
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