Enzo Piano co-designed
the Centre Pompidou, now already many years ago; it opened in 1977. He also designed the new Paris Palace
of Justice, which opened officially two weeks ago. (I recently took a photo
from the Centre Pompidou of the new Palace, see post here.)
In the
meantime, Piano designed a new seat for the Foundation Jérôme Seydoux–Pathé,
which opened in 2014. The
foundation was created a few years earlier with the objective to preserve the
legacy of the film company Pathé, founded by the Pathé brothers in 1896, the
second oldest film company in the world (prior to Universal, Paramount...), still
very active as a major film production and distribution company, owning a number
of cinema chains (Les Cinémas Gaumont-Pathé) and television networks.
One of the company’s
cinemas used to be here, at 73 avenue des Gobelins. Originally the place was
built as a theatre. The rather narrow facade dates from the opening of the
theatre in 1869 and is an early job by Auguste Rodin – ha was 29 and not yet “launched”.
The theatre later became a cinema and was so under different names (including “Rodin”)
until 2003.
The cinema theatre - behind the remaining facade - with some 800 seats has disappeared and is replaced by a quite revolutionary
construction, housing the foundation’s offices, part of the archives, space for temporary and permanent (especially
cinema projection equipment produced by Pathé) exhibitions … and
a small cinema theatre - which today partly is used to show old silent movies, accompanied by live piano music.
It’s quite difficult
to illustrate what you now find behind the facade. I have “stolen” one
illustration from the foundation website and have also found an aerial view,
thanks to Google Earth.
Seen from
the outside, you have the impression of some metallic cover - actually some 5000 "shutters" - a combination, two levels, of metallic plates and glass. The number of small holes in the metallic plates makes
it impossible to see the interior from the outside, but you can see the outside
from the interior.
2 comments:
Yesterday noon - on my way to my sister's house - I saw the new Paris Palace of Justice. Of course, when you see its photo, you already get the impression of its great size, but nothing prepares the viewer on seeing it closely. It is gigantic to the point of overwhelming.....
P.S.
So, in 2003 they pulled down that structure by Rodin? How could they do something like that? Maybe I just don't get it...
Love always your great photography and the impressive amount of research you do.
Maria
Ever changing - dynamic "City of Light"
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