The collections of the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine have recently been enriched by a substantial set of archives from the famous Cité Manifeste in Mulhouse, which has been awarded the Remarkable Contemporary Architecture in 2022. Tracing the genesis of this project signed by some of the biggest names on the contemporary scene, an original exhibition is open until 3 July at the Galerie d’architecture moderne et contemporaine in the Palais de Chaillot.
In 2005, the Cité Manifeste collaborative project was launched in Mulhouse, a low-cost housing estate that brings together leading names in contemporary architecture such as Lacaton & Vassal, L’Atelier Jean Nouvel and Duncan Lewis of Scape Architecture;
The Lacaton & Vassal series, 2005, © Philippe Ruault
The aim was to build 61 low-cost housing units commissioned by the Société mulhousienne des cités ouvrières (SOMCO), France’s oldest property company. The documentation on display at the Cité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine includes a never-before-seen collection of models, plans, photographs and videos documenting the entire project;
The project to create a social housing complex on a plot of land on the edge of Mulhouse’s working-class housing estate was subject to a tight budget at the time, making the project a real challenge for the architects. SOMCO wanted to offer large through-housing units with terraces and winter gardens. To meet these demanding specifications, my architects used unusual materials borrowed from the world of industry and agriculture.
The Poitevin-Reynaud series, 2005, © All rights reserved
The Lewis-Potin& Block series, 2005, © Duncan Lewis
Although each series of homes has its own style, they all share the desire to blur the boundaries between inside and outside, to emphasise the fluidity of movement for users and to respect the economy of the project by using inexpensive industrial materials: industrialised containers, horticultural greenhouses or even recycled garage doors.
The archives of the Cité Manifeste in Mulhouse will be on show until 3 July at the Galerie d’architecture moderne et contemporaine in the Palais de Chaillot.
The Atelier Jean Nouvel series, 2005, © AJN
The Jean de Gastines series, 2005, © JDG
Editorial staff: Camille Buzon