Introduction

One of then-French President Francois Mitterand’s grande projects in the early 1980’s, Le Parc de La Villette has become a symbol of deconstructionist architecture as well as one of the most criticized public works projects in the 20th Century. After a lengthy and controversial design competition, the design team led by Bernard Tschumi won the right to design a 55 hectare (125 acre) park site in the northeastern corner of Paris, not without its own controversy.

Source: Google Earth

History

The Geode which houses a 360 degree cinema

The site was long controversial. An attempt to modernize the Second Empire era slaughterhouses in the 1960’s ended in a major political-financial scandal which caused the slaughterhouses to never be completed. A battle between the Paris City Council and the state ensued over the future of the site. The State, led by then-President Valery Giscard D’Estaing, won in the end, and a design competition was announced and awarded. Several components were under construction when President Francois Mitterand was elected. As a desire to derail his predecessor’s legacy, Mitterand scrapped the plans and announced a new design competition. Tschumi’s team was announced the winner.

Project Description

Tschumi’s vision for La Villette attempted to create an urban park for the 21st Century, based upon three organizing elements: surfaces, lines, and points.

As indicated in this photo of a directory at La Villette,
the plan of La Villette highlights the follies which are indicated by the red squares.

The surfaces host various events throughout the park. Activities such as game playing, exercising, entertainment, and markets are included. The other surfaces are made of compacted earth and gravel and are more free and varied in their form.

The lines consist of axes, walks, and waterways. The use of a strong southeast to northwest axis along the west side of the park, nearly parallel to the St. Denis Canal, provides for an uninterrupted north-south walk and connects the two Metro stations that service La Villette. This axis also boasts a long elevated walkway with an undulating canopy running its entire length. Gardens with themes such as mirrors, dunes, play, shadows, bamboo, mists, trellised vines, movements, balance, slands, children’s fears and dragons are tucked along the main circulation system in La Villette. Also along this main path system sit large expanses of turf, which are heavily used for soccer games on the weekends. The Ourcq Canal provides another axis to connect La Villette to downtown Paris.

The walk nearly parallel to the St. Denis Canal is accented by the undulating canopy which connects the two Metro stations servicing La Villette.

The Balance Garden: One of the several thematic gardens located along the curvilinear path carved throughout La Villette.

The Bamboo Garden is one of the controversial spaces in the park due to the seculded nature of the space. This, along with the Mirror Garden, has been closed due to security concerns at times.

The Garden of Trellised Vines creates space that may be appealing to the eye, but creates spaces that are awkward to use and some corners, such as in the photo on the left, that may promote undesired activities.

The large bicycle parts, components of "La Bicyclette Ensevelie" (The Sunken Bicycle) by Claes Oldenburg, recessed into the earth provide a whimiscal character to the park.

Probably the most renowned and controversial aspect of La Villette is the layering of twenty-five folly over the landscape of La Villette, which constitutes the points of the system. Spaced at even intervals of 120 meters, they superimpose a grid over the entire site which is primarily viewable in plan or from the air. Each folly is based on a 10x10x10 meter cube, although the eventual “deconstructivist” form of each folly is unique. Some of the follies serve functional purposes such as informational kiosks, refreshment stands, or souvenir shops. Others provide a precipice from which people can view the grounds of La Villette. Yet, still others are purely examples of the deconstructionist architecture abound in La Villette, true follies.

Significance and Critique

The boldness of La Villette has attracted its critics, particularly by the Project for Public Spaces. La Villette has been characterized as possibly being too large to be a successful park with the exception of the times when there are large events. The proportions some of the spaces have been said to make one feel insignificant, while others make ones feel too constrained. The sense of enclosure of many of the spaces has been criticized as creating unsafe spaces. The lack of maintenance to the follies only exacerbates the debate.

However, some herald La Villette as the prime example of what a 21 st Century urban park should be. They acclaim the audacity of the design. The unparalleled urbanity is something to be revered, its enthusiasts boast.

Regardless of one’s opinion La Villette is an urban park worthy of study. Whether one takes from it lessons to be repeated or not repeated, it is an individual’s judgment call. The interlacing of the follies with the circulation pattern and the creation of various small rooms combined with the expanse of open space certainly creates a memorable park.

Visiting Le Parc de la Villette

Le Parc de la Villette is located in the 19 e Arrondisement in the northeast corner of Paris. La Villette is easily accessible via the metro: Le Porte de Pantin station on the southern end or Porte de Villette station on the northern end.

Address: 211, avenue jean Jaurès, 75019 Paris
Phone : +44 01 40 03 75 75

References

Chaslin, F.,. (1999). Bernard Tschumi: Parc de la villette, parigi = parc de la villette, paris. Domus, (817), 8-17.

Hinshaw, M. (2002). La villette after twenty years: Critics pronounced it the hottest thing in park design - today, parisians are voting "non" with their feet. Landscape architecture, 92(8), 124.

Parc de la Villette. “Spectacle Paris- Programme du festival de cinema en plein air de Paris- jardins et expositions au Parc Villette.” 2006. <http://www.villette.com/us/mainprog.htm>.

Project for Public Spaces. "Parc de la Villette - Hall of Shame | Project for Public Spaces." 2006. <http://www.pps.org/great_public_spaces/one?public_place_id=369#>.

Pugh, J. Daniel. (2004). Parc de la villette. Retrieved February 12, 2007, from <http://www.larch.umd.edu/DSW/LARC_263_Examples/Parc_de_le_Villette.pdf>

Vonier, T. (1993). Non-parallel parking: Two divergent approaches to urban parks in paris. Progressive architecture, 74(10), 66-71.