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/// DESIGN STORIES / Interview with Anne Démians                                                                                                                                                     Interview with Anne Démians / DESIGN STORIES ///



                                                                                                                                          How  does  architecture  enable  us  to  analyze  the  society  we   Which project has marked you most in your career?
                                                                                                                                          live in?
                                                                                                                                                                                               A.  D.:  Definitely the  urban  planning  and  home  construction
                                                                                                                                          Anne  Démians:  Architecture  considers,  analyzes  then  project  at  the  Porte  d’Auteuil  on  the  outskirts  of  Paris,
          ANNE DÉMIANS
                                                                                                                                          reveals  the  social,  cultural,  esthetic,  economic and  political  carried  out  in  partnership  with  the  architects  Francis  Soler,
                         Archi-thought-ure                                                                                                dimensions of the successive states of our society. Constantly   Finn Geipel  and Rudy Ricciotti, as  a genuine manifesto with
                                                                                                                                                            it
                                                                                                                                                                                                                               public
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     housing
                                                                                                                                                         us,
                                                                                                                                                                                                  differentiation
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           and
                                                                                                                                                                     our
                                                                                                                                                              exposes
                                                                                                                                          present
                                                                                                                                                   around
                                                                                                                                                                                                              between
                                                                                                                                                                         everyday words,
                                                                                                                                                                                      acts
                                                                                                                                                                                               no
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     private
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              a
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            –
                                                                                                                                                all
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       approach
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              exceptional
                                                                                                                                                                                                              and
                                                                                                                                                                                                                  the
                                                                                                                                          and gestures to their own echoes; because architecture is, in   beautiful  synthesis must  also  fruit  of an  brief moment  when  I
             CONCEPTS                                                                                                                     reasoning. Its purpose is to carry the invisible, sensitive aspect   designed  and  proposed,  on  my own  initiative,  "La by pointed
                                                                                                                                                                                               and
                                                                                                                                          fact, a discipline which depends on artistic agility and scientific
                                                                                                                                                                                                           I
                                                                                                                                                                                                        But
                                                                                                                                                                                                  work.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                         that
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     add
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            (the
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Nef"
                                                                                                                                                                                                    the
                                                                                                                                                                                                            high,
                                                                                                                                                                                               Nave),
                                                                                                                                                                                                        long,
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 crystalline
                                                                                                                                                                                                                               crossed
                                                                                                                                          of our imagination towards a happy reality, the positive effects
                                                                                                                                                                                                                          space,
                                                                                                                                                                                               arches, running through the interior space of the Hôtel-Dieu
                                                                                                                                          of which we can enjoy at all moments.
                                                                                                                                                                                               Hospital; a precious and useful work still at the proposal stage
                                                                                                                                          You  are  a  pioneer  in  the  field.  How  would  you  explain
                                                                                                                                                                                               today.
                                                                                                                                          Reversible Building Design to laymen?
                                                                                                                                                                                               Do you have anyone you would consider a "mentor", in your
                                                                                                                                          A. D.: Firstly, by telling them that it is important to reconcile
                                                                                                                                                                                               field or another?
                                                                                                                                          the  citizens  that  are  with  their  cities  and  their  future.  Then
                   ANNE  DÉMIANS  IS  ONE  OF  THOSE  PEOPLE  WHO                                                                         to  think  of  the  city  they  want  to  bequeath  their  children.  A.  D.:  The  architect  Frank  Lloyd  Wright,  to  cite  but  one;
                                                                                                                                          The domestic and public spaces that I design – whether they   due to,  of course,  the  immensity of his modern thought,  his
                   PAIRS  THEIR  DISCIPLINE  WITH  RESPONSIBILITY.  HER
                                                                                                                                          are  homes,  o ces  or  small  facilities  –  are  reversible.  The  futuristic designs and the sensitivity of his body of work. For
                   ACTIVIST'S  VISION  IS  BROUGHT  TO  LIFE  THROUGH
                                                                                                                                          challenge  is  breaking  the  chain  of  preformatted  products.  me, the Johnson Wax Headquarters remains his major work;
                   NATURAL  WORKS    AND  DIFFERENT  DESTINATIONS.
                                                                                                                                          When  architecture  is  reversible,  it  increases  the  lifespan  of  for its esthetic, social and functional dimensions.
                   THIS  ARCHITECT  AND  URBAN  PLANNER  –  RECENTLY                                                                      buildings which we now want to be "sustainable". It is simply a
                                                                                                                                          matter of thinking more about construction to produce more
                   APPOINTED  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  LEGION  OF  HONOR  IN
                                                                                                                                          beautiful  architecture;  and  reversibility is  one  of the  major
                   FRANCE  –  BREAKS  JUDICIOUSLY  FROM  PRECONCEIVED
                                                                                                                                          parameters to allow that.
                   FORMS.
                                                                                                                                          In  your opinion,  does  the architect  have an  activist  role to
                                                                                                                                          play?
                                                                                                                                          A. D.: Certainly. And much more so than before. Architecture
                                                                                                                                          has become a political discipline – and this is paradoxical – since
                                                                                                                                          politicians  show  less  and  less  interest,  besides  our  heritage
                                            Auteuil, Paris
    30                                                                                                                                    treasures. When in fact, the complexity in which contemporary                                           31
                                                                                                                                          architecture finds itself has never had so many components and
                                                                                                                                          parameters,  able  to  produce  such  a  host  of  new  specificities
                                                                                                                                          in  urban  planning,  useful  landscaping,  unexpected  design  and
                                                                                                                                          technical  innovation.  Among  them,  the  "mutable  city",  of
                                                                                                                                          course, based on reconsidered density, which makes individual
                                                                                                                                          aspirations  and  the  collective  challenge  of  a  reduced-carbon
                                                                                                                                          city compatible.
                                                                                                                                          Les  Dunes,  Black  Swans,  Hôtel-Dieu  Hospital,  Nancy
                                                                                                                                          Thermal,  ESPCI,  Vilnius  Train  Station,  among  others.  How
                                                                                                                                          do you choose the projects you would like to take on?
                                                                                                                                          A.  D.:  Whatever  the  project  and  its  context,  the  important
                                                                                                                                          thing  is  that  it  contributes  to  making  a  city  beautiful  and
                                                                                                                                          surprising and our landscapes astounding – whatever its size
                                                                                                                                          or purpose.
                                                                                                                                                                                               La Nef, Paris
                                                                                                                                          Architecture is primarily art that is used and thus, architecture
                                                                                                                                          in its "daily life" is what interests me most. And this – now a
                                                                                                                                          priority for me – does not exclude the massive stakes involved
                                                                                                                                          in major projects.
                                                                                                                                                                                                         One must think more about construction
                                                      Black Swans, Strasbourg
                                                                                                                                                                                                         to produce more beautiful architecture.
                                                                                                                                                                         Grand Nancy Thermal, Nancy
                                                                                                                                                                                                         And reversibility is one of the main
                                                                                                                                                                                                         parameters to achieve this.
                                                              Since opening her first architecture firm in 1995, Anne Démians has
                                                              left a unique and lasting mark on our urban landscapes. Les Dunes,
                                                              Black Swans, Hôtel-Dieu Hospital, Vilnius Train Station... she pays
                                                              as  much  attention  to  small  and  big  projects  alike,  as  long  as  she
                                                              can  bring  her  promises  to  life.  This  pioneer  of  Reversible  Building
                                                              Design, a winner of multiple major awards in the field, looks back on
                                                              her career path and shares her vision with us.
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