Nineteenth Century France

Nineteenth Century France

Primitivism

  • Myth of Origins

    • The Enlightenment philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau suggested that the more ancient a practice or technology was, the more unadulterated it was by custom and culture, making it more morally pure and suited to the human condition.

  • Laugier’s Primitive Hut

    • Primitivism often devolves into a mere battleground of styles played out in abstraction.

    • It reinforced the notion that architecture should imitate nature.

    • Source: Curtis, 26.

  • Nature in Design

    • Natural phenomena serve as analogies and metaphors in design.

    • Such phenomena are also the basis for the abstraction and conventionalization of architectural forms.

    • Refer to the frontispiece of "The Primitive Hut" from Essai sur l’Architecture by Marc-Antoine Laugier (1753).

Key Architectural Works and Contributors

  • The Primitive Hut

    • Referenced in Cours d’Architecture by Jean-Francois Blondel (1771-1777).

  • Building for the Academies

    • Marie-Joseph Peyre - Present since 1756.

  • Essai sur l’Architecture, 2nd Ed. by Marc-Antoine Laugier (1755).

    • Illustrated by Samuel Wale in 1755.

Jean-Nicolas-Louis Durand

  • Barracks for the Infantry (Student Project)

    • Antoine-Francois-Girard Bury (1804).

  • Significance: Durand was a critical figure in architectural education in the first half of the 19th century, teaching at the French Ecole Polytechnique rather than the Ecole des Beaux-Arts.

  • His compositional strategies were aimed at engineering students responsible for building French empire infrastructure and had a global influence.

Ecole des Beaux-Arts

  • Foundation: Established by Colbert in the 1670s and formalized in the 1720s.

  • History:

    • Suppressed during the French Revolution.

    • Reorganized in 1823.

    • Architecture section disbanded in 1968.

Notable Projects from Ecole des Beaux-Arts

  • Hotel for a Rich Banker (Grand-Prix)

    • Emile Bénard (1866).

  • Design for a Bridge over a Railway (Student Project)

    • Charles-Gustave Huillard (1852).

    • Project classifications: Second Class and First Class Project.

Major Structures and Architects

  • Gallerie de Verre

    • Designed by Felix Duban in Paris around c. 1835.

  • Bibliothèque Ste. Geneviève

    • Designed by Henri Labrouste (1838-1850).

  • Bibliothèque Nationale

    • Designed by Henri Labrouste (1854-1875).

  • Galerie d’Orleans

    • Designed by P.F.L. Fontaine in Paris (1828).

  • Galerie Colbert

    • Constructed between 1823 - 1827.

  • Jardin d'Hiver #2 by Hector Horeau (Paris, 1847).

Urban Planning: Replanning of Paris

  • Context: Undertaken by Eugene Haussmann under Napoleon III (1852-1870).

  • Haussmannization: This refers to the extensive replanning of Paris from the 1850s to 1870s.

    • Goals: To demolish thousands of Medieval and Renaissance structures to create wide avenues lined with six-story apartment buildings.

    • Rationale: Aimed at facilitating both private and commercial traffic while preventing barricades during revolts similar to the one that led to Napoleon III's rise.

Art Depictions of Paris

  • Noteworthy imagery includes:

    • Boulevard Montmartre - Painted by Camille Pisarro in 1897.

    • Avenue de l’Opera - Painted by Camille Pisarro in 1898.

    • Paris Street, Rainy Day - By Gustave Caillebotte (1877).

Key Figures in Architecture

  • Victor Baltard (1804-1875)

    • Notable work: Les Grands Halles, Paris (1852).

  • Eugene Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1879)

    • Quotation: “Gothic is the first and greatest application of the modern spirit to architecture, emerging from the midst of an order of ideas quite the opposite of those of Antiquity.”

Menier Chocolate Factory

  • Designed by Jules Saulnier in Noisiel-sur-Seine, France (1872).

  • Noteworthy for its engineering and design that reflected the period's industrial growth.

Paris Opera Competition

  • Timeline: Conducted in 1861 with significant developments leading to completion in 1872.

  • Designer: Charles Garnier (also active in 1861-1872).

    • Included representations of Apollo, Poetry & Music by Aimé Millet and La Poésie by Charles Gumery.

Historical Context: Origins of the Third Republic

  • Following the fall of the Second Empire due to the Prussian invasion, Napoleon III was captured and exiled.

  • Paris briefly occupied by the Germans, leading to the proclamation of the Third French Republic.

  • Resistance manifested in the form of a socialist Commune, violently suppressed in May 1871.

Legacy of Prominent Architects

  • Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923)

    • Notable Projects: Garabit Viaduct (1882-1884) and Eiffel Tower (1889).

  • Richard Morris Hunt (1827-1895)

    • First American to attend Ecole des Beaux-Arts (1846-1855).

    • Established prominence in American architecture and legal precedences concerning architects' rights.

  • Henry Hobson Richardson (1838-1886)

    • Influenced by European styles; significant works include the Buffalo State Asylum (1869) and Trinity Church (1872).

    • Suffered health issues, eventually leading to his early death in 1886.