From «le ventre de Paris» to functional vacuum

Les Halles through the 'anarchitecture' of Gordon Matta-Clark

In some instances, recourse to destruction can become a pretext to mark a new beginning, a restart. The decision to demolish marks a point of no return and is often part – and end – of a more complex and intricate process, involving difficult acceptances and acknowledgements, as well as possible reconsiderations and changes in direction fueled by both internal and external factors.

In a Paris that has just witnessed upheavals on the political and cultural fronts, overturned by new urban and territorial planning strategies, violent student protests, and the sudden rise of Georges Pompidou (1911-1974) to the Presidency of the French Republic, there is no shortage of opportunities for a substantial demolition campaign¹. Two contiguous areas straddling the 2eme and 4eme arrondissements were especially affected by complex urban and architectural operations between the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. On one hand, these operations involved the demolition, begun in 1971, of the Paris market pavilions built by Victor Baltard (1805-1874) between 1852 and 1872 – which were considered obsolete – to allow the construction of the new RER (Réseau Express Régional) station Châtelet-Les Halles beneath «le ventre de Paris»², and, on the other,  the launching in in 1969 of a competition to determine the future use of the extensive area known as Plateau Beaubourg, which had been vacant since 1935³.

The demolition action carried out in Les Halles has had a twofold effect, both by promoting actions and initiatives aimed at protection, conservation and preservation, but also by triggering a chain reaction of destruction. The case of the Square des Innocents and the fountain that stands at its centre is emblematic in this regard; during the dismantling operations, this jewel-like square was completely deprived of its trees, deemed too old to be transplanted, in favour of maintaining the position of the fountain and ensuring its complete protection throughout the entire yard, with the promise of returning the public space of the square entirely to pedestrians. The efforts made by public authorities to minimise the collateral damage of this massive architectural and urban operation are evident in the period between the decision to move and the actual relocation: between 1969 and 1971, the pavilions remained in operation and hosted a wide variety of recreational and cultural activities, allowing Parisians to explore Baltard's work, which was often inaccessible due to the site’s strict regulations. But the issue of renewing Les Halles also took on all the features of a human drama. A significant percentage of the buildings in the neighbourhood were in a dilapidated state, sometimes uninhabitable, and the population density, composed mainly of small artisans, was much higher than the Parisian average; from the early 1970s, evictions, as well as decisions to demolish entire buildings in the Beaubourg and Saint-Martin îlots, were substantial and continued even during the construction of the Centre Pompidou (1971-1977)⁴.

In 1975, in fact, the American artist Gordon Matta-Clark (1943-1978) was invited by the curator of the Musée National d'Art Moderne, Jean-Hubert Martin (1944-), to participate in the Paris Biennial, and he decided to install his artwork in Les Halles district, specifically within two 17th-century buildings, close to demolition, located at 27-29 Rue Beaubourg⁵. With Conical Intersect, Matta-Clark transformed his structure – and its demolition – into a communicative act, not only by placing a critical emphasis on the «Gaullist cleansing» operation, but also by capturing the spectator in a destructive vortex, making him a participant in the consequences of these demolitions and directing him towards the concrete result and the ultimate goal of the process: the Centre Pompidou⁶.

Office of the Prefect of Paris

Paris, 13.5.69

NOTE on the DISMANTLING of the HALLES PAVILIONS

The Les Halles pavilions built by BALTARD⁷ will be dismantled gradually.

The construction of the two superimposed Châtelet stations on the East-West regional line and the Sceaux line will require the removal of pavilions 7 to 12.

Initially, it will be necessary to  simultaneously dismantle pavilions 7 to 10⁸.

However, if pavilions 9 and 10 are not dismantled before the end of July, they can be used for the Festival du Marais, which begins on 3rd June and runs for a month⁹.

Pavilion 11 comprises almost 2,300 m2 of floor space per level, but part of this area will have to be reserved for passageways, cloakrooms and storage areas. In addition, some of the surface area will quickly become unusable due to the proximity of the excavations. However, the pavilion could be used for theatrical performances and various exhibitions. It would also be possible to install a small suite of shops.

Pavilion 12 is a replica of Pavilion 11, and its use poses more delicate problems, since it is assumed that any occupants will have to vacate it before the summer of 1970. However, it is planned to set up a permanent “Halles village” devoted to second-hand goods, where a number of exhibitions will also be held.

In addition, six pavilions located to the west of the carreau des Halles - pavilions nos. 1-2-3-4-5 and 6 - will only be vacated when the meat wholesalers leave¹⁰. 

One of them, No. 6, which until now has been occupied by a number of fruit and vegetable wholesalers, will very shortly be reserved for the retail market, although this will not preclude the possibility of installing temporary sports facilities for local schoolchildren in the basement¹¹. 

Jean [?]

(ETANT-D’ART POUR LOCATAIRE) CONICAL INTERSECT 

PARIS, ‘75  

All earlier works used buildings neither as objects nor as art material but as uniquely cultural complexes in a given social fabric. These works that consisted of questioning the internal dependencies of a structural system also implied a [deleted word] harbored the necessary extension into [deleted word] of an urban dialogue. Such a dialogue beginning illegally and in solitude at New York’s Pier 52¹² on the Hudson became both clearer and more available to the public on the Paris streets.

Invited by the Bienal¹³ the site was approximately the upper half of the north walls [deleted word] of 27-29 Rue Beaubourg two modest town houses built in 1700 for Mr + Mrs De Cesseville as what looks like his and her domiciles¹⁴. Though these buildings are of little historical importance they remain.

Virtually [deleted word], Amount, the last structures to be torn down in a general Gaullist-Pompidou inspired ‘modernization’ of Les Halles and Plateau Beaubourg¹⁵. The project [deleted word] These buildings are brought into full relief by a backdrop of the immense bridge-like structure of the Center Pompidou. To be opened soon as the seat of a half dozen cultural administrations. (five scruffy survivors leaning in a row facing off with a brave-new cob web of culture)¹⁶

Despite the odds, through a remarkable set of coincidences this location corresponded with uncanny exactness to project plans for Paris arrived at over a year ago: (a non-u-mental son et lumiére for passers by or a sun and air standard for lodgers)

In short a form that has little to do with any ‘one’ thing.

The shape was a [deleted word] The activity for two plaster dusty weeks was cutting a conical void out of the upper halves of 27-29 Rue Beaubourg so that its base with the north facade was 4m in diameter diminishing in circumference as it passed walls, floors and attic of the adjacent building. The central axis of the opening was set approximately 45° incline from the center of Rue Beaubourg.