Description
Seventies spirit in the Parisian sky
In the heart of the 11th arrondissement, this apartment, renovated in 2019 by the Heros agency, offers an unobstructed panoramic view of the sky and Paris’s major landmarks. It is located in a building designed by architect Maurice Novarina in the late 1960s.
Located on the fifteenth and top floor, this apartment benefits from a south-southwest exposure and spans 51 m². It features an entrance hall, a living area with a fully equipped open kitchen, a bedroom with a walk-in closet, and a bathroom. A cellar completes the property.
Its spaces showcase a minimalist contemporary aesthetic, defined by a dialogue between the brightness of pristine volumes and a set of built-in furniture arranged along one side of the living area. Custom-designed, these furnishings mark the entrance, provide ample storage for the living space, and delineate the kitchen with a countertop.
This refined approach offers great flexibility of use while preserving unobstructed visual perspectives toward the spectacular Parisian skyline, framed by large bay windows with metal frames.
Close to all amenities and local shops, this apartment enjoys the tranquility of the residence. It is ideally located: just a 2-minute walk from the Rue des Boulets metro station (Line 9), less than an 8-minute walk from Faidherbe-Chaligny station (Line 8), and five minutes from Place de la Nation (Lines 1, 2, 6, 9, and RER A).
A contemporary renovation “inspired”
The Heros agency has designed a refined layout, guided by the building’s concrete structure. The apartment’s non-load-bearing walls were removed to create a spacious living area, offering flexibility of use in line with contemporary lifestyles. A custom-built wooden unit, integrating most of the apartment’s storage as well as all its technical elements, helps to structure this open space.
The choice of wood essence, retro-style switches, and finishing materials—light carpeting in the bedroom, blue mosaic tiles in the bathroom—pays tribute to the aesthetic of the 1970s.
Universe 21: Geometry and Synthesis of the Arts.
The Univers 21 complex was built by Maurice Novarina in 1967. Inspired by the modernism of Auguste Perret and Le Corbusier, the architect used reinforced concrete for the building’s structure and designed staggered facades with recessed balconies, breaking the monotony of the whole. The use of pilotis, a nod to Corbusian principles, creates vast communal spaces that serve the entire ground floor. The residence’s cruciform layout opens up airy spaces, landscaped into a shared garden for residents, offering a touch of nature in the heart of Paris.
A hallmark of the era’s architectural style, the entire building is clad in light-colored ceramic tiles, producing shifting plays of light across the facades. The common areas and garden basins are adorned with colorful mosaics featuring geometric patterns, reflecting the “Synthesis of the Arts” movement popular in the 1960s and 1970s. With its high architectural quality, this complex is a prime example of the private residential models of the postwar boom years, distinguished by its materials, aesthetics, and construction.
Maurice Novarina
Maurice Novarina (1907-2002) was an architect and urban planner from Haute-Savoie, active between 1933 and 2000 in the Paris region, Normandy, and the Rhône-Alpes area. He designed numerous housing projects and facilities, though his work is often most recognized for his religious buildings. These led him to collaborate with Father Couturier, a priest and theorist of sacred art, as well as with modern artists such as Georges Rouault, Fernand Léger, and Marc Chagall.
Chief architect of civil buildings and national palaces (now the role of Chief Architect of Historical Monuments) and a professor at the École Spéciale d’Architecture for ten years, he also taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris from 1968 to 1976. Maurice Novarina was elected to the Académie des Beaux-Arts of Paris on June 6, 1979.
An emblematic figure in 20th-century architecture, he was also known for his research on the value of space and his rational, pragmatic approach to architecture. He drew inspiration from the models of modernist doctrine (Auguste Perret and Le Corbusier) to create “ordinary” architectures, which became widespread after 1945 during the postwar reconstruction and the Trente Glorieuses.
A retrospective exhibition dedicated to him in 2007 was organized by the Conseil d’architecture, d’urbanisme et de l’environnement of Haute-Savoie to mark the centenary of his birth.
Technical details
Asking price: €660,000
The fees are payable by the seller.
Property tax: €1,257
Co-ownership. Number of units: 620
Annual share of current co-ownership charges: €3,378.58
Heating: Gas
ENERGY CLASS: D / CLIMATE CLASS: D.
Estimated average annual energy expenses for standard use, based on 2021 energy prices: between €500 and €730.
