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Pierre ThiébautOld Buildings Looking for New Use. 61 Examples fromEurope242x 297,5 mm, 276 pp. with 400 ill. in b&w and colour, EnglishISBN 3-936681-08-2Euro 69.00, sfr 108.00, £ 48.00, US$ 86.00, $A 118.00

The regions of Europe have an architectural heritage that is a thou-sand years old; today’s challenge is to integrate this heritage intocontemporary life in a sustainable way.

From the first, architecture has always aimed to adapt to theway of life of the society it serves, but few buildings have comedown to us intact and as they were originally designed. Since thesecond half of the 19th century the speeding-up of history hasincreased the rhythm of change and has led to continual restruc-turing, extension and conversion.

These changes have brought about the use of more and moreinnovative techniques, based on flexibility and reversibility, but theweight of materials, the time needed to implement these pro-grammes, financial constraints and cultural compartmentalisationhave deferred many of these projects and left us with a museumheritage frozen in time and quite unrelated to the original purposeof the buildings.

What can be done with buildings looking for new use – a fort-ress without an army, a château without a lord, a workshop with-out an artisan, a factory without workers, or even an abbey with-out monks or a church without a congregation?

The rise of a new national or international style or the creationof innovative techniques does not necessarily damage the integrityof a place. Modern techniques and materials, such as glass andsteel, have a transparency, lightness, flexibility and reversibility thatmake them highly suitable for integrative undertakings.

The examples presented in this book all demonstrate a desireto be considered as »local« projects and to take their place in anevolutionary interpretation of history. After more than a century ofconflicting debate on the subject of rehabilitation, it seems that theaims expressed in the Charter of Venice have borne fruit by givingrise to quality and personalised buildings that themselves are acontribution to this debate.

Pierre Thiébaut studied architecture in France and in the USA(where Louis Kahn was one of his professors), and is also a gradu-ate in planning of the Institut d’Urbanisme de Paris and the EcoleNationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris. Prior to his presentactivity as a writer of articles and books on architectural rehabilita-tion and teacher at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Architecturede Paris La Villette, he was an Architecte des Bâtiments de Franceheading the Service Départemental du Patrimoine du Conseil Gé-néral de Seine et Marne.

The regions of Europe have an architectural her-itage that is a thousand years old; today’s chal-lenge is to integrate this heritage into contempo-rary life in a sustainable way.

From the first, architecture has always aimedto adapt to the way of life of the society it serves,but few buildings have come down to us intactand as they were originally designed. Since thesecond half of the 19th century the speeding-upof history has increased the rhythm of change andhas led to continual restructuring, extension andconversion.

These changes have brought about the use ofmore and more innovative techniques, based onflexibility and reversibility, but the weight of mate-rials, the time needed to implement these pro-grammes, financial constraints and cultural com-partmentalisation have deferred many of theseprojects and left us with a museum heritagefrozen in time and quite unrelated to the originalpurpose of the buildings.

What can be done with buildings looking fornew use – a fortress without an army, a châteauwithout a lord, a workshop without an artisan, afactory without workers, or even an abbey with-out monks or a church without a congregation?

The rise of a new national or international styleor the creation of innovative techniques does not necessarily damage the integrity of a place.Modern techniques and materials, such as glassand steel, have a transparency, lightness, flexibili-ty and reversibility that make them highly suitablefor integrative undertakings.

The examples presented in this book all demon-strate a desire to be considered as »local« pro-jects and to take their place in an evolutionaryinterpretation of history. After more than a centuryof conflicting debate on the subject of rehabilita-tion, it seems that the aims expressed in the Char-ter of Venice have borne fruit by giving rise toquality and personalised buildings that themselvesare a contribution to this debate.

Pierre Thiébaut studied architecture in Franceand in the USA (where Louis Kahn was one of hisprofessors), and is also a graduate in planning ofthe Institut d’Urbanisme de Paris and the EcoleNationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris. Priorto his present activity as a writer of articles andbooks on architectural rehabilitation and teacherat the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Architecturede Paris La Villette, he was an Architecte desBâtiments de France heading the Service Dépar-temental du Patrimoine du Conseil Général deSeine et Marne.

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5 8 6 0 0ISBN 978-3-936681-08-6069.00 Euro

108.00 sfr048.00 £086.00 US $118.00 $A

Old Buildings Looking for New Use

61 examples from Europepresented by

Pierre Thiébaut

Edition Axel Menges

Old Buildings Looking for New Use61 examples from Europe

presented by Pierre Thiébaut

© 2007 Edition Axel Menges, Stuttgart /LondonISBN 978-3-936681-08-6

All rights reserved, especially those of translationinto other languages.

Reproductions: Reinhard Truckenmüller, StuttgartPrinting and binding: Everbest Printing Co., Ltd., China

Translation into English: Neil StrattonDesign: Pierre Thiébaut

Introduction

Archaelogical heritage

»Magazzini romani«, Civitavecchia, ItalyArchaeological Museum, Naxos, GreeceTeatro de Sagonte, SpainMusée des Tumulus, Bougon, France Museo Andréa Guardi, Piombino, Italy

Aristocratic heritage

Temple de l’Amour, Isle-sur-Serein, FrancePalazzo della Pilotta,Galleria Nazionale, Parma, ItalyMusée de la Marine de Loire, Châteauneuf-sur-Loire,France Schloss Horst, Gelsenkirchen, GermanyCastello di Rivoli, Museo d’Arte Contemporanea, ItalyEricsson Palace, Prague, Czech Republic

Military heritage

Castle of Montemor-O-Velho, PortugalCastello di Piombino, ItalyCaerphilly Castle, WalesFort Napoléon, Ostend, BelgiumRoyal Castle of Koldinghus, Vejle, DenmarkCastelgrande, Bellinzona, SwitzerlandSchloss Juval, ItalyCastillo de Pénafiel, SpainSuomenlinna info centre, Inventory Chamber, Hel-sinki, Finland Heritage interpretation centre, Brie Comte Robert,France

Religious heritage

Chiesa di San Donato, Castelnuovo di Farfa, ItalyMonastir de Santa Maria de Poblet, Tarragona, SpainStiftung Kloster Frenswegen, Nordhorn, GermanyAbbaye de Nieul-sur-l’Autise, FranceInstituto Rei Afonso Henriques, Zamora, SpainKunsthaus, Mürzzuschlag, AustriaMusée d’art sacré Francis Poulenc, Rocamadour,FranceMonastir de San Pedro de Rodes, Port de la Selva,SpainChapelle du Saulce, Island, FranceCathedral of Skara, Sweden

Institutional heritage

Alte Nikolaischule, Archäologiemuseum, Leipzig,GermanyCentro cultural Templo de San Marcos, Toledo, SpainCementerio de Castelnou de Bages, SpainKatholische Universität, Eichstätt, GermanyCentre de Promotion, Vleeshuis, Gent, Belgium

Domestic heritage

Städtisches Museum, Böblingen, GermanyZuiderzee Museum, Enkhuisen, Holland

Casina Can Cardenal, Olot, SpainIndividual house, Le Beaucet, FranceMusée d’histoire de la ville, Luxembourg

Farming heritage

Grange, Chevannay, FranceMuseo della terra, Grangia di San Pietro, Latéra,ItalyMairie, Belmont d’Azergues, France»Wohn-Silo«, Lukasod, GermanyMusée ornithologique, Les Hauts de Bonaguil,FranceGrange, Machault, FranceMuseo Vostell, Malpartida de Caceres, SpainGrange, Chargey-lès-Port, France

Craft heritage

Moulin de Crevant, Thouars, FranceWater tower, Utscheid, GermanyOcrerie de Sauilly, Diges, FranceCarrière souterraine d’Aubigny, Taingy, FranceBrewery, Bath, England»42 The Calls«, Leeds, England

Industrial heritage

Museo della Carta, Isola del Liri, ItalyCentre historique minier, Lewarde, FranceRheinisches Industriemuseum, Oberhausen, Ger-many Musée des arts contemporains MAC’s, Le Grand Hornu, BelgiumMusée de la mine, Cagnac-les-Mines, FranceStadtbibliothek, Landau, Germany

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A bridge, a canopy, a temple of love in BurgundyTemple de l’Amour, Isle-sur-Serein, France

Architects:Dirk Jan Postel (Kraaijvanger Urbis)

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On the edge of the park of the old château a converted 18Cfolly is devoted to the romantic memory of the meetingsbetween the Princess of Orange and her lover.

A few paces from there, on the abutments of a ruined 19Cbridge, the words of a new Temple of Love.

Site plan

1 Temple of Love I (18C folly)2 Temple of Love II3 River Serein4 19C bridge (local road)5 Ruined bridge

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The smooth, slightly ochre concrete sur-face blends with the tones of the originalparapets of local Massangis stone, eventhough differing in texture.The light roof clad with metal is placedsimply on its supporting walls of lami-nated glass braced by small panels oftoughened glass.

The pier of the old bridge houses a lowvaulted room serving as a dwelling, withthe square pavilion above;

The trap door in the ground leading to the cellar, now glazed, makes this modest space bathed in reflections full of a luxuri-ant vegetation mingled with the babbling of the river still moreintangible.

Detail, roof structure