Paris Haussmann, LAN

In the 19th century, Paris was profoundly transformed from top to bottom, from the central districts to those on the outskirts. By extension, Georges Eugène Haussmann, prefect of the Seine from 1853 to 1870, embodied this century of works that still determine the urban organization and identity of the capital today. The book Paris Haussmann explores and analyzes the characteristics of this homogeneous and polymorphous landscape, the result of a long process of recent changes and evolutions. Conducted at all scales, the research classifies and compares axes, distinguishes public spaces, organizes blocks and buildings according to their current geometry, and for the first time reveals the qualities of the Haussmann model in relation to the challenges of the contemporary city.

Almost ten years after the exhibition “Architecture = Durable” (for which Jacques Ferrier was the scientific curator), “Paris Haussmann, modèle de ville”, for which Atelier Franck Boutté is the scientific curator with LAN Architecture in 2017, is an opportunity to showcase research on Haussmannian urban planning at the Pavillon de l'Arsenal.

The question of sustainability is the common thread running through these two exhibitions and publications, but the subject and the purpose are completely different: in “Architecture = Durable”, an investigation into pioneering Parisian achievements sought to flush out the emerging signals of a new architecture and a renewal of Parisian identity; in the “Paris Haussmann” exhibition, the Haussmannian urban legacy is analyzed in relation to contemporary sustainability issues.