Posted Sep 28, 2022, 5:01 PMUpdated on Sep 28, 2022 at 5:02 PM
In 2025, small pavilions in glass cobblestones or raw earth will line the avenue Charles de Gaulle, in Neuilly-sur-Seine (Hauts-de-Seine). The mayor of the town, Jean-Christophe Fromantin (DVD), unveiled on Tuesday, September 27 the two winning architects of the “Folies de Neuilly” competition: Maison Edouard François and Manuelle Gautrand Architecture.
The elected official plans to install 19 small constructions for commercial, experimental or cultural purposes on this artery in full transformation. Named “Folies”, in reference to very fashionable buildings in the 18th and 19th centuries halfway between architecture and art, these pavilions will welcome companies, brands or cultural actors whose mission will be to animate the Avenue Charles de Gaulle.
Modular constructions made from recycled materials
The architects in the running had to imagine spaces of around 30 m2, infinitely flexible. The two selected firms proposed eco-responsible Folies, built from recycled materials. That of the Maison Edouard François is thus made up of raw earth, which will be recovered from the surrounding construction sites. Printed in 3D, his Folies all fit in an identical glass box, inside which the shapes can vary.
The Manuelle Gautrand Architecture firm will also use a material from the territory’s deconstruction sites: glass. This will be reassembled into blocks whose shape, color and opacity may vary. These glass bricks will then be assembled inside a wooden portico structure.
The crisis has accelerated the transformation to digital and put local shops in difficulty. Les Folies offer an alternative with an experience, an encounter that is worth going to the store
Jean-Christophe Fromantin Mayor (DVD) of Neuilly-sur-Seine
This great modularity should allow the companies that will settle there to adapt the space to their needs and their uses. Because these Folies will not be classic shops: they will not have stock, nor a window or cash register. The objective is to offer new ways of consuming.
New modes of consumption
“The crisis has accelerated the transformation to digital and put local businesses in difficulty. Les Folies offer an alternative with an experience, a meeting that is worth going to the store, ”explains the mayor of Neuilly. The city has just launched a call for projects from companies and public actors to finance and then operate the Folies via a temporary occupation authorization (AOT) for the public domain for 15 years.
Each Folie is estimated at 600,000 euros. A sum that should quickly pay for itself given the strategic positioning of the Folies, in the heart of the historic axis between the Champs-Elysées and La Défense, on a 2 km portion of the avenue under construction to be transformed into a vegetated urban boulevard.
The main criterion for selecting future operators will be the intensity of the proposed experience. Finally, the candidates will have to commit to participate once a year to decline their Madness for a collective use in favor of a great cause or an event. The winners will be designated in mid-2023 for installation in early 2025.
