JEAN NOUVEL

BRISE SOLEIL
"Objects are there to
transmit emotions, to
inscribe a poetic
dimension in daily life,
to interrogate the
essence of things"
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12 AUGUST
1945 -
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SADLY NO WORKS IN INDIA

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Le Corbusier
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 TIMELINE

BIBLIOGRAPHY
1945 Born in Fumel, Lot-et-Garonne (France)

1966 Admitted first in the entrance examination for the Ecole nationale suprieure des Beaux Arts, Paris (France)

1967 Assistant to Claude Parent and Paul Virilio

1970 - 1971 Wins competition for "Site naturel cration architecturale"

1970 - 1972 Associates with Franois Seigneur

1972 Receives diploma from the Ecole nationale suprieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris (France)

1972 - 1981 Associates with Franois Seigneur and Gilbert Lzns

1976 Co-founder of the French Architectural Movement "Mars 1976"

1977 Co-founder of the Syndicat de larchitecture, contributes to the organization of the international competition for the Halles
district in Paris (France)

1980 Founder and Artistic Counsellor of the Architecture Biennale within the Paris Biennale (France)

1981 - 1984 Associates with Gilbert Lzns and Pierre Soria

1981 Wins competition for the Arab World Institute, one of the "Great Projects" ordered by former President Francois Mitterrand

1984 - 1989 Founder of Jean Nouvel et Associs (Jean Nouvel, Jean-Marc Ibos, Myrto Vitart, Emmanuel Blamont)

1989 - 1994 Founder of JNEC (Jean Nouvel and Emmanuel Cattani)

1994 Establishes Ateliers Jean Nouvel

TIMELINE

AWARDS
2014 Best Tall Building Worldwide and Best Tall Building Asia & Australasia by the CTBUH for One Central Park in Sydney (Australia)

2013 Doctor "Honoris Causa" Louvain Catholic University (Belgium)

2012 Best Tall Building Worldwide and Middle East & Africa by the CTBUH for the Doha office tower (Qatar)

2011 European Hotel Design Award for the Hotel Sofitel Stephansdom Vienna (Austria)

2010 Wallpaper Design Awards - Best public building of the year for the Symphony Hall in Copenhagen (Denmark)

2010 Officer of the "Lgion dhonneur" (France)

2008 Pritzker Architecture Prize

2007 Crystal Globe of Honor

2006 Doctor "Honoris Causa" Higher Institute of Art of Cuba.

2006 Officer of the "Ordre national du mrite" (France)

2006 Crystal Globe, architecture category (best architect)

2006 International Highrise Award 2006 for the Agbar Tower in Barcelona (Spain)

2006 Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize in Architecture, American Academie of Arts and Letters (USA)

2006 Creator of the Year Award, Maison & Objet Exhibition (France)

2005 Wolf Prize in Arts, Wolf Foundation (Israel)

2002 Doctor "Honoris Causa" University of Naples (Italy)

2002 Knight of the "Lgion dhonneur" (France)

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AWARDS
2002 Honorary Doctorate of the Royal College of Art, London (UK)

2001 Praemium Imperiale (Japan)

2001 Gold Medal of the Royal Institute of British Architects

2001 Borromini Award for the Culture and Congress Center in Lucerne (Switzerland)

2000 Golden Lion from the Venice Biennale (Italy)

1998 Gold Medal from the French Academy of Architecture

1997 Commander of the Ordre des arts et des lettres (France)

1995 Honorary Fellow, RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects)

1993 Equerre d'Argent for the Opera House in Lyon (Best French Building of the Year Award)

1993 Honorary Fellow, AIA Chicago (American Institute of Architects)

1990 Architectural Record Prize for the Saint James Hotel in Bouliac

1989 Aga Khan Prize for the Arab World Institute

1987 Equerre d'Argent for the Arab World Institute (Best French Building of the Year Award)

1987 Grand Prix national d'architecture (France)

1987 Knight of the Ordre national du mrite (France)

1983 Doctor "Honoris Causa" University of Buenos Aires (Argentina)

1983 Silver Medal from the French Academy of Architecture

1983 Knight of the Ordre des arts et des lettres (France)

INTERVIEW WITH ELENA CU
EC:HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE YOUR
ARCHITECTURAL THOUGHT?
 JN: I think its similar to the solidification
of a cultural experience

academicism
pastiche

guidelines
There isnt enough thought, planning, or love in the designs that come about like that.

Theyre automated and dont have any soul.

EC:SO, WHAT IS YOUR PERSPECTIVE?
JN: Mine is generally from the outside in.
Sometimes it can be from the inside out, but
thats rare. Im always looking for exteriors.

Serpentine Gallery, London

EC:FOR EACH PROJECT, IN WHAT FACTORS DO YOU
SEEK YOUR INSPIRATION?
JN: In life and situations. I believe in situational
architecture. Circumstances dont only relate to
the actual place, but also to the aspects of an
encounter or an appearance.
 EC:YOUR AESTHETIC PRINCIPLES ARE REMINISCENT OF THE ARTIST
JAMES TURREL, WHO EXPLORES THE PERCEPTION OF SPACE BY USING
LIGHT TO MODIFY THAT PERCEPTION. ARE YOU INTERESTED IN THIS
ARTISTS TRAIN OF THOUGHT?

James Turrel
 JN: I am really interested in Turrel. Hes someone
that works with light, nothingness, and location.
Hes an artist that completely plays with locations. His
works simply cant be moved to different places. Their
meaning derives entirely from their locations

JN: Needless to say, all of James Turrels work

involving perspective and light has clearly
inspired me for a very long time.
NOTABLE WORKS
INSTITUT DU MONDE ARABE
Purpose of the building: to create a destination devoted
to the relationship of the Arab culture with France
FACTS AND FIGURES

Investment: 341 million of French Francs

Surface area: 26,900 sq. meters

Land area: 7,250 sq. meters

Length: 77 meters

Width: 35 meters

Height: 32 meters

South faade: 2000 sq. meters

Mashrabiyas 240, half of which composed of mobile apertures.

 THE LIBRARY AND ITS BOOK TOWER
The library spans across three floors connected through the book tower, which
spirals up and offers beautiful views of the urban landscape, including the
Seine river, Notre-Dame, and the Boulevard Saint-Germain.

It springs from the ground in a glass case which culminates in the most
spectacular of IMAs rooms, the High Council Room, and its panoramic views of
the city.

The upward ramp of the book tower is reminiscent of the Great Mosque of
Samarras minaret. As with all other nods to Arab iconography, Jean Nouvel
transcended the minaret to only retain its most abstract essence.

In the context of its renovation, the library will soon unveil its new setting and
collections.
 HYPOSTYLE HALL:
Under the forecourt, a seemingly endless forest of columns leads to the
auditorium. Its repetitive nature conveys a sense of infinity.
It is a purely abstract space, whose immensity evokes the Luxor Temple, and the
Mosque of Cordoba, the latter being a unique emblem of Arab-Muslim
architecture.
The space also bears witness to the persistent geometry which governs the
entire building. The exactitude and precision of each line, rigor, and
redundancy give an architectural strength to the basement.
MOBILE APERTURES
The system incorporates several
hundred light sensitive diaphragms
that regulate the amount of light that
is allowed to enter the building.

During the various phases of the lens,

a shifting geometric pattern is formed
and showcased as both light and void.

Squares, circles, and octagonal shapes

are produced in a fluid motion as light
is modulated in parallel.

Interior spaces are dramatically

modified, along with the exterior
appearance.
PANAROMIC VIEW FROM THE ROOF TOP AND HIGH COUNCIL BUILDING
 Awards won:

The Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1989

Equirre dArgent for French architecture in 1987

LOUVRE ABU DHABI
Architecture is never something you create alone. You always
create it somewhere in particular, at the request of one person
or several people, but always for everyone to enjoy.
- Jean Nouvel
THANK YOU!