The Unité d'Habitation of Briey (also Cité radieuse de Briey-en-Forêt) is a housing unit built between 1959 and 1960 in Briey (Meurthe-et-Moselle) by the Franco-
Swiss
Swiss may refer to:
* the adjectival form of Switzerland
* Swiss people
Places
* Swiss, Missouri
* Swiss, North Carolina
*Swiss, West Virginia
* Swiss, Wisconsin
Other uses
*Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports
*Swiss Internation ...
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 ...
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (6 October 188727 August 1965), known as Le Corbusier ( , , ), was a Swiss-French architect, designer, painter, urban planner, writer, and one of the pioneers of what is now regarded as modern architecture. He was ...
according to the
Unité d'habitation
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, foundation = 1 April 1993
, location = Chişinău, Moldova
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, num_employees = 2,750 employees As of 2019
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design principle established for
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
. It was originally built for the
HLM
An habitation à loyer modéré (HLM, , ), is a form of low-income housing in France, Algeria, Senegal, and Quebec. It may be public or private, with rent subsidies.
HLMs constitute 16% of all housing in France.Lorraine mining basin.
Georges-Henri Pingusson
Georges-Henri Pingusson (July 26, 1894 – October 22, 1978) was a French architect.
Biography
Georges-Henri Pingusson was born 1894 in Clermont-Ferrand. 1920-1925 he studied architecture at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.
He built hotel ''La ...
was the chief architect for this neighborhood, which included two sets of 100 housing units and a school. The development of iron mines and
steel
Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...
production in the region led to rapid population growth. The objective of the project was to build housing adequate for the needs of the growing population.
In 1955, Le Corbusier met with officials in Briey, after which he was appointed chief architect of this project. André Wogenscky was appointed managing architect. The HLM office was the contracting authority.
The proposed building was 110 meters long and 56 meters high (70 meters at its highest point) by 19 meters wide.La Cité radieuse Le Corbusier – Académie de Nancy-Metz The structure encompassed 339 duplex apartments spread over 17 floors with six internal streets. The structure was modeled on the Radiant City of
Rezé
Rezé (; br, Reudied, Gallo
Gallo may refer to:
*Related to Gaul:
** Gallo-Roman culture
**Gallo language, a regional language of France
**Gallo-Romance, a branch of Romance languages
**Gallo-Italic or Gallo-Italian language, a branch spoken ...
, with only minor alterations made. For instance, the size of the units was smaller due to HLM regulations; there was no equipment on the roof;, and there were no commercial sections along the streets. Construction began on March 3, 1959, and ended two years later.
Abandonment and rehabilitation of the unit
The first tenants arrived in 1961, but problems soon developed. Structural defects and poor maintenance plagued the building. Economic conditions in the region worsened. The Briey mines eventually closed, and some of the tenants began to experience financial difficulties. In 1983, the last tenants were moved out of the structure which, afterwards, remained largely abandoned.
In 1984, it was proposed that the structure be demolished, but the new mayor of Briey, Guy Vattier, opposed the plan. A committee was established with the purpose of saving the structure. In the meantime, the town
hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...
purchased part of the building to accommodate a nursing school. In 1989 an association called "The First Street" occupied another part of the structure. It organized cultural events focusing on the
visual arts
The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...
and architecture. In 1991, the remaining apartments were sold to private buyers. Since 1994, the structure has served as the site of a local architectural book festival called “Architectural impressions”.
On November 26, 1993, parts of the structure were registered as historical monuments. These included the facades, roofs and
portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
, the hall with its counter, and the first street, as well as apartments 101, 116, 128, 131, 132, 133 and 134.« Inscriptions Monuments Historiques » sur la plateforme ouverte du patrimoine, base Mérimée, ministère français de la Culture As of July 16, 2007, the facades and roofs of the old boiler room, along with its portico also were registered as historical monuments. The entire set is classified now as "20th century Heritage".
In 2010, following three years of construction under the direction of architects Medrea and Ferauge, the facades were restored and the housing units were repainted in the original colors.
Bibliography
*Jacques Sbriglio, Le Corbusier: the Unit of Marseille and the other housing units in Rezé-les-Nantes, Berlin, Briey en Forêt and Firminy, France, Birkhäuser,2004, pocket ( , LCCN 2004051709 ), p. 210–218.
*Joseph Abram (with an interview with Guy Vattier), Le Corbusier in Briey. Eventful History of a Housing Unit, Paris, Jean-Michel Place, coll. "Architecture / archives",2006, 76 p. ( , LCCN 2007370441 ).
*Gérard Monnier, Le Corbusier. Housing units in France, Belin, coll. "The destinies of heritage",2002, 240 p. ( ).