Half Dose #19: Palace Fouquet's Barriere

This 80-room hotel, located on the Champs Elysees and set to open in 2006, is designed by Edouard Francois for the Groupe Lucien Barriere. The corner addition connects to its neighbors to create a unified hotel, while also linking aesthetically between the two.



This last is accomplished by copying a Hausmanian building on the Champs Elysees and creating its replica in a moulded concrete facade.



Given that this articulated facade doesn't relate to the interior rooms, openings are punched into the concrete wherever necessary, creating a mash of (traced) old and new.



This concept is a very intriguing approach for relating to, and integrating with, historical buildings. It falls somewhere between contemporary buildings that strive for contrast and neo-traditional buildings that use less-literal means of copying. Reminiscent of artwork by Rachel Whiteread, it's a design that I hope receives widespread press when complete, as it's an idea ripe for discussion if not replication.

Links:

:: Groupe Lucien Barriere
:: Eduard Francois