She's the unloved one in Paris. Since its construction in 1974, it has never been able to win the hearts of Parisians. Wart, incongruity, horror... What a lot of quolibets she has heard! For some people, the most beautiful panoramic view of Paris is from the Montparnasse Tower... because it is the only one from where you can't see it. This disastrous image may soon be history: an international architectural competition is open to give it a makeover, to give it a new lease of life. Presentation of the projects on July 13th.
Qhen Malraux imposed in the midst of the Thirty Glorious Thirties the idea of building a Tower in the heart of Paris, a showcase, like the Eiffel Tower was in its time, of French know-how and engineering, he had no idea that he was going to give birth to a monument of problems.
Despite its 209 meters high and 58 floors, the Tower has never made its mark on the landscape. It has even become a symbol of the architectural mistakes of the 1970s.
They even thought of destroying it, bringing it down forever. But the cost of the operation soon proved untenable. Time went by and the great metropolises of the world were adorned with prestigious buildings, making our Montparnasse Tower even more of a youthful mistake. It was therefore necessary to act. This is what the current co-owners of the Tower did, united within a real estate company. They entrusted the architect Jean-Marie Duthilleul with the task of organising an international competition. Candidates have until July 13 to submit their applications. The decision will be taken in the spring of 2017.
Jean-Marie Duthilleul knows the neighbourhood well. He is the one who built the Montparnasse train station. He confided to the daily newspaper La Croix that the Tower "is the most important building in the area. bad dialogue with the sky and with the city ». Candidates will therefore have to resolve this issue as a priority. Their projects must be in line with the great Parisian perspectives, those of the Eiffel Tower or the Luxembourg Gardens.
The architects will also have to solve the problem of the Tower's cap and its panoramic restaurant. What shape will it take to make the Tower a lasting part of its century?
Finally, last recommendation: place the tower in its environment.
A challenge when we know that integration in its context is the congenital drama of the current tower. The architectural historian François Loyer reminds us to The Cross : " The decision to build it was taken in 1962, by André Malraux himself, during the adoption of the draft urban master plan of Paris. This document replaced the Paris regulations, whose origins go back to Louis XIV ! All of a sudden, there was a desire to move into modernity, where great harmony and continuity had prevailed.. »
It is true that the decision to build this tower was highly political. It was necessary, in this gesture, to show the extent of French industrial know-how. On this occasion, the glass manufacturer Saint Gobain invented the "curtain walls", an innovative construction technique that will be used all over the world. But this is precisely where the problem lies. Indeed, the tower was built by engineers and not architects. It lacks that special and dazzling stroke of genius that distinguishes a great building, which is destined to last in history, from a building without spirit.
Let's hope that the selected architects will be able to give spirit to this Montparnasse Tower. It is in great need of it.
