The Église Notre-Dame du Raincy (Church of Notre Dame du Raincy) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church in the commune of

Le Raincy Le Raincy () is a prestigious commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Le Raincy is a subprefecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis department and the seat of the Arrondissement of Le Raincy. Its populat ...

near

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. It was built in 1922-23 by the French

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Auguste Perret Auguste Perret (12 February 1874 – 25 February 1954) was a French architect and a pioneer of the architectural use of reinforced concrete. His major works include the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, the first Art Deco building in Paris; the C ...

and

Gustave Perret Gustav, Gustaf or Gustave may refer to: *Gustav (name), a male given name of Old Swedish origin Art, entertainment, and media * ''Primeval'' (film), a 2007 American horror film * ''Gustav'' (film series), a Hungarian series of animated short cart ...

. The edifice is considered a monument of

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

in architecture, using reinforced concrete in a manner that expresses the possibilities of the new material.

Design and construction

At the beginning of the 20th century, Le Raincy was a small parish church for suburbs whose population was rapidly growing. In 1918, the parish priest of Le Raincy, Felix Nègre, proposed to build a church to commemorate the French victory in the Battle of the Marne in 1914. Through connections among parishioners, Nègre came into contact with the Perrets. The design used concrete for economy. Rather than attempting to simulate masonry, the new material was used on its own terms, with standardized elements, slender supports, and thin membranes pierced by windows. The completed church received widespread favorable attention, influencing architectural thought at a time of rebuilding and economic recovery.

Glass

The magnificent

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

was created by Marguerite Huré using colored coatings on clear glass for economy. The colors are dominated by blues near the entry and progress to warmer tones in the sanctuary.

Organ

The 1875 John Abbey

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

belonging to the original parish church was moved to the new church. Changes made in 1957 changed its character. Public donations are now being sought for a new organ. The new organ was inaugurated by

Pierre Pincemaille Pierre-Marie François Pincemaille (8 December 1956 – 12 January 2018) was a French organist, improviser, and pedagogue. He was known for his organ improvisations, both in concert and on CD and for his recordings of Charles-Marie Widor's ...

on october, the 17th of 2010.

Restoration

At the time of the church's construction, concrete was still an experimental material. Deterioration was noted by the 1960s, and studies showed that the original concrete contained an excess of lime and water. Coverage of the steel reinforcing was also deficient. Restoration work has proceeded, with particular attention to the tower, using more modern materials and techniques.

Copies

In 1937, at the

Tokyo Woman's Christian University , often abbreviated to TWCU or , is an independent Protestantism, Protestant university in Tokyo, Japan. Founding TWCU was established by Nitobe Inazō (1862–1933), an author, diplomat and educator, who was appointed as the first president in ...

, a chapel was built that was similar to Notre-Dame du Raincy. It is around half the size. The copy by architect

Antonín Raymond Antonin Raymond (or cs, Antonín Raymond), born as Antonín Reimann (10 May 1888 – 25 October 1976)"Deaths Elsewhere", ''Miami Herald'', 30 October 1976, p. 10 was a Czech American architect. Raymond was born and studied in Bohemia (now part ...

was unauthorised. Christine Viskenne-Auzanneau argues that: "Reimann knew about Notre Dame du Raincy". The Czech architect, Bedřich Feuerstein came to Tokyo in 1926 and worked with Reimann between 1926 and 1931, after working a year in France with the Perret brothers. The Raincy church also led to other inspirations in Japan.Koichi Yoshida, « Auguste Perret », Kashima Shuppankaù 1985, p. 222-229. Koichi Yoshida, « Lo Rainsi Noturu damu » (« L'église Notre-Dame du Raincy — son originalité et son influence »), NihonGakkai, n° 341, p. 127-133.

References

External links

Notre-Dame du Raincy at Structurae website
; page in English
notredameduraincy.fr/en
- Pay donation here (bank card or PayPal.
longitudinal section of the church

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Website of Notre-Dame du Raincy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eglise Notre-Dame Du Raincy Churches in Seine-Saint-Denis Roman Catholic churches completed in 1923 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in France