Parimien, Concert Venue and Food Hall in Réinventer Paris / Shigeru Ban

© RSI-STUDIO & Shigeru Ban Architects

The Japanese Architect Shigeru Ban was among the designers chosen for the Réinventer Paris competition. The competition asked for proposals to revive 23 sites throughout the city of Paris.  Shigeru ban submitted a design for an area of land in paris’ 4th arrondissement.

Concert Venue and Food Hall by Shigeru Ban technical information

  • Architects : Shigeru Ban
  • Typology : Cultural Project / Auditorium
  • Location : Paris, France
  • Competition : Finalist 2015
  • Images : © Courtesy of Shigeru Ban / © RSI-STUDIO
  • Expected program : No specific expectations, should include a crèche with 66 cots and at least 5,000 m² of social housing.
  • Owner : The real estate complex is the property of the Paris Department and the city, following the transfer of ownership by the State in 1980. Metro line number 7 runs through the ground under the plot (RATP volume) before crossing the Seine.
  • Plot area : 8.379 m²
  • Overall floor area : about 40,000m² of which 1,400m² are basements, equivalent to about 36,600m² of office space.

Designing a house is far more difficult than making an art museum or an office building.

– Shigeru Ban for The Japan Times in 2013

Parimien Concert Venue Images 
Parimien, Concert Venue and Food Hall in Réinventer Paris / Shigeru Ban

© RSI-STUDIO & Shigeru Ban Architects

Parimien, Concert Venue and Food Hall in Réinventer Paris / Shigeru Ban

© RSI-STUDIO & Shigeru Ban Architects

Parimien, Concert Venue and Food Hall in Réinventer Paris / Shigeru Ban

© RSI-STUDIO & Shigeru Ban Architects

Project Requirements and Description

Existing buildings

The Immobilier Morland complex was built for offices with the main entrance at 17 Boulevard Morland in the 4th arrondissement. It consists of several interconnected buildings in the form of the letter H: a central 17-storey building, two 10-storey wings and 5- and 3-storey extensions.The built up plot on the banks of the Seine is bordered by the Quai Henri IV, the Rue Agrippa d’Aubigné, the Boulevard Morland and the Rue Schomberg.

The plot includes a vast esplanade alongside the Boulevard Morland and a facade on the Quai Henri IV. The building was constructed between 1957 and 1964 by architects Albert Laprade (head architect for secular buildings and national palaces), Pierre-Victor Fournier and René Fontaine to bring together in one place the administrative offices of the Ville de Paris and the Seine Prefecture. The building includes a staff restaurant, a general basement and panoramic balconies.

Current uses

Various Ville de Paris and State departments, the Paris Town Planning Workshop, and the management association for the administrative restaurant.

Environmental situation

An office building – asbestos and lead diagnostics do not indicate any elements likely to have a strong impact on a future project.

Urban context

For several years the banks of the Seine, where the Immobilier Morland complex is situated, have been the subject of renovations and enhancement projects such as the operation in the Ilot Schömberg developed by Yves Lion in the 1990s to create 128 housing units and today’s prestigious residential programme in the same vein.

Shigeru Ban Proposal

Restricted to a height of 25 meters, Shigeru Ban’s proposal exists in harmony with surrounding buildings, presenting a fully glazed façade to the adjacent street. A large egg-shaped volume appears as the principle element of the design, containing programs that require no daylight such as concerts and exhibitions spaces.

The glassy boundaries allow the open space to have plenty of natural light, while the archways make the place more inviting and visually appealing. At the rear of the site, a large café and market is contained beneath an undulating timber canopy that references the forms and materials often associated with Ban’s work. At night, the illuminated building would have stand as a beacon on the banks of the river seine, drawing in passersby.

Parimien Concert Venue by Shigeru Ban Plans
Parimien, Concert Venue and Food Hall in Réinventer Paris / Shigeru Ban

© Shigeru Ban Architects

Shigeru Ban is a japanese architect, known for his innovative work with paper, particularly recycled cardboard tubes used to quickly and efficiently house disaster victims. He was profiled by Time magazine in their projection of 21st century innovators in the field of architecture and design. In 2014, Ban was named the 37th recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize, the most prestigious prize in modern architecture.

More Works from Shigeru Ban

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