The CNIT, a fascinating brutalist constructing in Paris la Défense

The CNIT, previously the french Center for New Industries and Techniques, has proudly displayed its brutalist concrete shell since 1958 within the La Défense district of Paris.

Designed on the initiative of Emmanuel Pouvreau, president of the machine software producers’ union, by three Grand Prix de Rome architects, Jean de Mailly, Robert Camelot and Bernard Zehrfuss, the CNIT is, together with “La Grande Arche“, probably the most emblematic buildings on the esplanade of La Défense in Paris.

Strolling a number of occasions the esplanade of La Défense these final years, I had the chance to understand the curves of the CNIT and to {photograph} them in the midst of the perpetual constructing websites which encompass it…

The CNIT vault, a masterpiece of twentieth century structure

Worthy of Gothic structure, in keeping with the previous Minister of Tradition André Malraux, the immense vault nonetheless impresses each in and out, greater than half a century after its creation.

This vault is the very essence of a timeless and audacious structure and testifies to the know-how of post-war French engineering.
It stays at present the one intact aspect of the unique constructing, for the reason that facades and inside have been destroyed and redone throughout a number of renovations.

The three architects of the CNIT will maybe stay within the firmament of structure due to this celestial vault, labeled as a historic monument.
Nonetheless, you will need to know that though its design was impressed by the architect Jean de Mailly, it owes its existence to the engineer Nicolas Esquillan, who invented and formed this double self-supporting strengthened concrete shell, made from skinny sails with stiffeners.

A real technical feat unequalled thus far on the planet for such a size, the vault is made up of two 6.5 cm thick concrete shells separated by a void.
Its design is just like that of an plane wing.

The CNIT is 46 meters excessive and both sides is 218 meters lengthy, forming an equilateral triangle.

The roof consists of three “followers” comprising 18 spindles deployed from the three concrete abutments weighing 84 tons every, forged to a depth of 12 meters.
Though the vault is self-supporting, 44 metal cable ties assist keep its inflated sail form.

Immaculate conception

The roof, painted white for the reason that origin, having misplaced a lot of its luster, was renovated in 2011.
The restoration work consisted of scorching gluing mobile glass with bitumen and masking the entire with felt and PVC to take care of the waterproofing and regain a number of the unique immaculate whiteness.

The CNIT, buried, martyred, however lastly liberated?

The CNIT, the primary development of the longer term La Défense district in Paris, was inaugurated in 1958 by Common de Gaulle.
On the time of its development, the constructing adjoined a visitors circle the place, since 1883, a statue known as “the Protection of Paris” (which gave its title to the enterprise district) was displayed.

Surrounded by a concrete slab

Throughout its first three many years, the CNIT went from its remoted throne on the high of a hill in Puteaux metropolis, within the royal axis of the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe, to a partial burial within the parvis of La Défense.
It misplaced virtually 1 / 4 of its seen half, because the concrete slab district was constructed round it from the Seventies.

Over time, towers 2 to 4 occasions increased have encircled it, making the constructing lose its monumentality.

Much less area beneath the vault

In 1989, throughout an enormous renovation venture, the CNIT was “amputated” of a big a part of the area beforehand devoted to giant exhibitions in addition to its “cocotte” staircases, folded like origami hen, which had brought on a sensation in 1958.

For this work, the constructing was utterly emptied, and the vault uncovered appeared in all its splendor to the eyes of Parisians.
A lot so {that a} collective of seven architects composed of Mario Botta, Paul Chemetov, Borja Huidobro, Renzo Piano, Aldo Rossi, Alvaro Siza and James Stirling launched an enchantment to protect this fabulous area beneath the vault.

In the long run, the inside was redeveloped as deliberate with a five-story constructing and retailers organized in an arc round an atrium, lowering the inside magic of this futuristic bubble.

On the skin, the curtain partitions designed by the architect Jean Prouvé have been destroyed however partly rebuilt identically.

In 1989, the CNIT acronym took on a brand new which means and was remodeled into Center for New Industries and Applied sciences“.

A brand new enhancement

In 2009, the CNIT was restructured as soon as once more and regained a few of its former architectural status.

On the south facet, it’s separated from the concrete slab urbanism due to the development of a kind of moat. It’s then related to the facet of the Place de La Défense through 5 footbridges, permitting a glimpse of its base.
The concrete abutments on which the ribbed shell rests turn out to be just a little extra seen from the sky and on the sting of the sq..

Inside, the slab on the stage of the esplanade is partially reopened, permitting the creation of decrease accesses beneath the extent of the parvis de la Défense and to get well a peak beneath the vault near the unique.

The inside home windows of the shops within the mall are partially bleached to higher diffuse daylight.

The CNIT on the finish of the tunnel?

Between 2020 and 2022, the underside of the Cnit was utterly reworked to permit for the creation of the brand new RER R station, constructed 30 meters beneath the constructing.
The feat of the work consisted in chopping 120 of the 250 posts that had supported the Cnit since its creation and constructing a concrete slab 3 meters thick supported by new pillars that exchange the outdated foundations!

If the 2009 restructuring had given it again some area round it, the brand new model of 2023 ought to put the vault again within the highlight due to spectacular new accesses on the stage of the East and West piers.
To be continued…

Regardless of the assaults on its structure, the Cnit has remained one of many main figures of the brutalist structure of “Les Trente Glorieuses“ within the Parisian suburbs, like the “Centre Nationwide de la Danse” of Pantin or the the twenty first Century Metropolis in Créteil.

CNIT, exponent 3

• An equilateral triangular development
• A vault composed of three parts resting on 3 abutments
• A triumvirate of architects to its realization.
• A burial beneath concrete slab on the peak of three flooring.
• 3 renovations in fifty years.
• 3 inaugurations: September 12, 1958, October 4, 1989 and October 21, 2009.