Born in 1913 and passing away in 1998, Georges Maillols is renowned for his influence on Rennes’ architectural landscape. A graduate of the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris, he settled in Rennes in 1947 and contributed to numerous social projects, from urban renovations to emergency housing construction, in a city deeply scarred by World War II.

Influenced by architects such as Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Oscar Niemeyer, as well as the geometry of the Bauhaus, Maillols emerged as a pioneering architect of the Trente Glorieuses (post-war economic boom). He transformed Rennes into his architectural laboratory, reinventing the typology of residential towers. He designed over 10,000 housing units, some of which became true icons of the era, such as the Horizon Towers and the Saint-Just Block.

Maillols did not limit his work to large urban complexes. Between 1973 and 1979, he designed several housing developments in rural communities and the outskirts of Rennes, where he conceptualized the “elastic house”, a dwelling intended to be adaptable and forward-thinking in response to urban density.

« We must construct the writing of our time with the techniques of our time. »

Maillols’ work is rooted in a quest for innovation and the use of contemporary techniques, making Rennes, even in its historic city center, a showcase of modernity. His extensive use of “architectonic” concrete enabled the construction of towering buildings, heavily inspired by his travels to the United States. His designs featured futuristic silhouettes marked by the graphic vocabulary of the façades.