Paris Brut ©
A collection of illustrated paper cut-out models portraying brutalist architecture of Paris from late 1950s-1970s. The series features buildings scattered around the City of Paris` arrondissements, as well as the infamous "banlieues" built over newly incorporated suburbs which quickly became a playground for the HLM office (Habitation à Loyer Modéré) pioneering "rent-controlled" housing in Paris. The concrete blocks of Cité des 4000, round towers of Les Choux de Créteil, Cité Curial-Michelet - largest estate of Paris, and high-rise Orgues de Flandre towers, were to provide thousands of new homes for the rapidly growing population. Soon however, some of these urbanizations became affected with social problems and gained off-limits status. 1990s and 2000s brought renovation and demolition frenzy in France, and the spectacularly blown-up slabs of Cité des 4000 became a metaphor of the fall of urban dreams of functional concrete homes for middle and working class.
Paris Brut pays special tribute to those unfullfilled modernist ideas with a free recreation of Le Corbusier`s 1925 Plan Voisin - unrealized solution for the centre of Paris. On the other hand, Paris has had in stock perfect examples of "béton brut" constructions which after redecoration gained second life and are still being marvelled at. The Kalisz´s building, since 2003 home to Le Centre National de la Danse, is a perfect case in point.
The collection is made up of six illustrated models to assemble: Orgues de Flandre, Les Choux de Créteil, Cité Curial-Michelete, Cité des 4000, Centre National de la Danse and Plan Voisin interpretation. The whole set is Eco-friendly - printed on recycled paper and cardboard, and includes a short technical note on the architects, year of construction and exact location of each building.
Following `Brutal London` and the Warsaw inspired `Eastern Block`, `Paris Brut`is yet another attempt at cataloguing post- war modernist architecture in a playful paper form which allows to look at this type of constructions from another perspective.
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'Paris Brut' is now available in our online shop and bookshops around Europe.
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