PAGE 50 RAMP

laborate with Parent.

sed and wants to col
philosopher Paul Viri lio, who is highly impres
t “topled” des ign, photographed by
the firs
1963 Maison Drusch,

centrated on
for the moment still con

ory,
“fonction oblique” the
roof is a prelude to Parent’s
. Its sloping pagoda-like
Pec q, in Boi s le Roy, a village in Normandy
le
1963 Maison Bordeaux

1550
 RENT
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TIPPING n you have called
tal k wi th you about the conditio n all
Rem Koolhaas We wa nt to ceiling, it is in betwee
ca us e it’s no t ab ou t a wall, a floor, or a tin ct, the firs t time
“oblique” be onstruct your first ins
wa nte d to rec u
the elements. That’s
wh y I tion, that was for yo
u. I wo nd er wh at led you to this inven da te?
the idea came to yo t is now obviously ou
t of
g the future, and tha
universal, representin
t rather involved
wa s no t tow ard s the oblique itself, bu l
Claude Parent The firs
t imp uls e the otherwise horizonta
me nts . I ha d an ob session with pivoting
the idea of pivoting ele le bit…
a client who was a litt
cube. So when I had
ental?
RK Curious? Experim ck
family in an ordinary bri
usc h, a yo un g en gin eer who lived with his dle ma na ge rs.
CP It was Mr. Dr Parisian suburb for mid
f in Le Chenet, a small d two or three local
house with a tiled roo d a ne w house, so he contacte y
In the early 1960s Mr.
Dr usc h wa nte Versailles and were ver
ille s, bu t all the ir ske tches were inspired by do tha t, yo u ha ve
architects from Versa this, he said: “You ca
nnot
nsultant Mr Lepoix saw mended – he had
rural. But when his co s one of three arc hit ec ts he rec om
a co mp eti tio n.” I wa
to organize
magazines.
gotten my name from built.
r than the one we finally
eti tio n wit h a pro jec t that was even cheekie e roa d at the fro nt.
I won the comp
d wit h for est at the back and the villag d, I
, fringe es aroun
The site was very deep ade like all the other on
n’t wa nt to bu ild a house with a small fac Mr . Dr usc h did n’t want that
As I did
sed en tire ly on co lumns. In the end
proposed a project rai t do something else.”
d me , “I un de rst an d your argument – bu
project. He tol
so he suggested
r. Th e situ ati on be came quite desperate, house
We worked on it for on
e yea out the outside of the
d. He sai d: “I ha ve been bothering you ab the rin g yo u wit h
a change of metho s been bo
kno w ho w it is sup ported, and my wife ha eri or wit h me – the
because I want to int
on you will discuss the
itch roles. From now l discuss the outside
the inside. So let’s sw ich I do n’t ca re about – and you wil
kitchen and the bedro
om s, wh did this, and it worked.
do esn ’t un de rst an d anything about it. We
with my wife, who
onship.
stabilizing the relati
RK Role reversal – de -
orm the roof into some
the ide a of the roo f – or at least to transf I ha d to tip it ov er.
CP In order to refuse ss of a rectangular gro
und – I thought
n jus t the he ad dre thi s pri nc iple , we
thing more tha Drusch had accepted
side down. Once Mr.
It would be a cube up
achieved it.
worked it out and we
DES!
OLIC VIRILIO / LOUR
ANNOYINGLY CATH pin g pro ce ed from there?
ss of tip
RK How did the proce r
hitects. But one of ou
Vir ilio wa s no t int ere sted in working with arc ite d the Dr usc h
CP Originally Paul Ca rrade, introduced him
to me. We vis
d
er ca lled Mi ch el he wa s so am aze
friends, a paint I had just built, and
rdeaux-Le Pecq, which
house and the Villa Bo
rk with me.
ated on the roof... that he wanted to wo
dies of bunkers
ssi on for bu nke rs. He had done many stu
out his pa ramps.”
Virilio was telling me ab do bunkers. He said,
“You’ve already made
d me tha t we ha d to sn’t allo we d to do stairs.
and he tol cre ate d ram ps because I wa
y I ha d
I told him that previousl
int
ific grotto: Lourdes! Sa
e bu nke r” me an t a grotto, in fact, a spec an d mo ved to Nevers
grotto at Lourdes,

1551
For Virilio, “th he r vis ion s in the
fied aft er
Bernadette was beati
PAGE 52 RAMP

:
e No. 7 Sept–October
in Architecture Princip
tex t on Bun ker Arc heology, republished d of the ir fun ctio ns, removed from topical
wn with his ar. Strippe one of the great secrets
of
a toppled bunker, sho nd monuments disappe underground universe
1958 Virilio’s photo of ary history, ten thousa roach, I sought in this ension; the mass is
me na of a dra ma tic moment in contempor an arc heo log ical app sed , res istin g app reh
“Pheno meaning. With is no longer correct, but
depres
se works have taken
speak of an unknown ded, worn. The angle ... Banal remnants, the
contexts, these works lon ger affirmative, but ero of mo vement and articulation dness of an epoch
geo me try is no nde nt, cap abl e exa mp les of the blin
our time. ... The und , but centered on itself,
indepe
diff icul t to demolish. Astoun
ding
faculties, an
ed in the gro e the y are so n but on his psy chic
no longer anchor es and are protected only bec
aus
the phy sical proportions of ma ind ividuals.”
enc y of slop d no lon ger on sibi litie s of
on the basic consist architecture founde finally unite with the sec
ret pos
works announce a new overcome, habitat can
to itself, these primitive soc ial rea lity fina lly
elementary analysis of
urbanism in which, the

d the Grotto:
Virilio on Lourdes an e, and I was
urd es [th at] year for the first tim
“I went to Lo the first time
ulous! Fabulous! It’s
knocked out. It was fab tto . Do yo u know
bielle, the gro
I’ve ever been to Massa It’s Ba sq ue , the loc al patois
ssabielle?
what that means, Ma m. I we nt on a
Bernadette comes fro
for “old rock,” where . He wa s go ing,
hop of La Rochelle
pilgrimage with the Bis wit h him . Ma ssa bie lle.
ed we’d go
and a few of us decid grees. When
nig ht an d it wa s hot, too, over 40 de
I went at tel l yo u! My heart
the grotto – I can’t
I got there and I saw Ma ssa bie lle. I was
getting near
stopped, I knew I was I co uld ma ke ou t the path
gradually
stumbling along and ing, and in the
tte too k to go to the grotto. I kept go
Berna de fro m the grotto. I can’t
of light coming
distance, I saw a sort my wife, this is
e at first sight. I said to
tell you. It was like lov ”
where we come from.
where we were born, h Julie Rose,
gro tto in an interview wit
—Paul Virilio on the
Log 2, Spring 2004.

1552
 RENT
RAMP II: CLAUDE PA PAGE 53
rnadette church
r fam e, an d since there was no Be
afterwards to take she
lter fro m he when he talks about
he r na me to our Nevers church. So w
already in Lourdes, she
ga ve . But I don’t agree. I kno
ob liqu e, Vir ilio alw ays refers to this grotto pro jec t in Lo urd es.
the origins of the centenary anniversary
cause I worked on its
the Lourdes grotto be
centenary?
hitect who staged the
RK You were the arc
r-in-chief at
Pierre Vago, the edito
e of sev en arc hit ec ts who worked on it. jec t. He wa s close to the
CP I was on e, wa s in charge of the pro d
L’Architecture d’Aujourd
’hu i at the tim me. For Lourdes he ha
the ma ga zin e in the late 50s and he liked . He wa s no t
at me
priests. I was working had only the grotto to
offer
projects to others and e of cleaning agent.
distributed all the big ch I co uld do , so I pla yed the rol
taking many risks! Th
ere wasn’ t mu and it’s clean now.
ryw he re. .. I removed everything,
The grotto was full of
ex-vo tos eve men and 50 for men.
t. I als o ha d to de sig n the toilets, 50 for wo
Only the rocks are lef
hitecture?
PEBBLE / GROTTO re you for oblique arc
w did thi s ex pe rie nce in Lourdes prepa
RK Ho
use of his personal
wh ich is qu ite annoying, but beca posed
CP Virilio is very Ca tho lic, two churches were sup
wit hin the ch urc h he was able to learn that of de sig ne rs being
connections ve his name on the list
na ge d to ha ed
to be built in Nevers an
d he ma ngs. Virilio an decidd I
mp eti tor s we re ask ed to design two buildi
considered. Three co .
idea at a time [laughs]
to do only one... One
aces. I’ve
ideas about church sp
iat ely dre w the pla n. For years I had certain d I fin d tha t int imidating.
I immed ge neral too narrow, an
ch urc he s we re in alm os t empty but
always thought that to church. The front be
nches were
e wh en I use d to go pe op le like me used to
I was always lat to sit the re. As a consequence,
I never dared to interr
upt the Ma ss h a consistent width.
go ing in, wh ich is sill y. So I gave this churc
of
stand outside instead
enter by the side?
this? Could you also
RK How did you solve
se the church, but
org an ize rs de cided suddenly to rai se to
CP We got lucky beca
use the ed to keep the floor clo
ha d a for m on the ground. So we decid An d we ad de d
our project already ating a slope.
rai sin g the ch urc h on the left and right, cre d a few da ys lat er I
the ground by
. We ske tch ed eve rything together an s ch urc h,
middle p in the Never
a staircase, right in the imp res sed by the beauty of the ram t
n. I wa s ps.” I told him tha
had finished the sectio u’ve already made ram
. He told me: “But yo irs. But the church in
which surprised Virilio be cause I wasn’t allo we d to do sta
previously I ha d cre ate d ram ps
f because Vir ilio didn’t want my
s dif fer en t. I wa s dra wing everything mysel
Nevers wa
staff to do it…
s”
. I call it “le caillou gri
ver co nsi de red the Nevers church a grotto a gro tto , as we ll as
I personally ne s project was
pe bb le] to avo id the term. But for Virilio thi ally sp ea kin g, no thi ng is
[the grey
ou r mis for tun e. Fo r Virilio, architectur the wa r
all with your bunkers,
a bunker. This created I use d to tell him: “Quit it ou t
n the bu nke r. ryt hin g is ab
more beautiful tha s project eve
bu nke r is no t inh ab itable, and in the Never exp eri en ce : at firs t
has ended!” A h go through a similar
All visitors to the churc and then they are
inhabiting the space. tw ard ly he avy and hard appearance,
h the ou
they are confronted wit
t inside…
surprised when they ge

RK They are moved.

understanding and

1553
t thi s eff ec t in order to explain my ft about
CP Yes, and I wrote ab ou there is something so
ap pro ac h fro m Vir ilio’s. In my perception
differentiate my

earch.
re than 10 years of res
heology, based on mo
1975 Virilio’s Bunker Arc
PAGE 54 RAMP

grotto...
ernalia at the Lourdes
ng of religious paraph
1948 Pre-Parent clutteri

ALTAR
BENCH

RAMP

ALTAR RAMP RAMP

altar...
simple square platform for the
te snake bench and a
n, adding a ramps on both sides, a concre
1958 Parent’s “cleaning” pla

1554
 RENT
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n now. Only
everything, and it’s clea
full of ex-votos everywhere... I removed
cleaning agent. The grotto was
s Grotto, completed: “I played the role of
1958 Parent’s Lourde
the rocks are left.”

1555
PAGE 56 RAMP

of the building...
ciple for the envelope
g by Michel Carrad e: ramping also a prin
du Banlay, Nev ers, perspective drawin
1964 Sainte Bernadette

.
pebble] to avoid the term
call it “le caillou gris” [the grey
the church a grotto. I
ally never considered
Sai nte Ber nad ette completed: “I person ker. This cre ate d all our misfortune.”
1968, as a bun
was a grotto, as well
But for Virilio this project

1556
to the
e the same relationship
sformed. We do not hav
the chu rch , it is clea r that everything is tran selv es from the wo rld of architecture.”
1968 “When you walk
into ting our
d that we were separa
is different. We believe
ground, the equilibrium
 RENT
RAMP II: CLAUDE PA PAGE 57

how surprising it is, because at first

hers keep on telling me
the church. The preac y are ins ide, they feel the peac
e.
– but once the
it seems uninhabitable
nker’s austerity?
making use of the bu
RK But you do admit
are magnificent, yes.
nc ed tha t the re are forms of bunkers that
CP I remain convi
me architects
int erf ere wi th the idea. Do you know so
does n’t
RK And the staircase
of bu nk ers ?
ject. There must
me . He wr ote two books on the sub
CP No, but Virilio believ
es he kne w so tation of a bunker
ts be ca use eve n the Loos house was an imi
hitec
have been bunker arc
ma de by an arc hit ec t.
ne. But honestly,
tha t I foc us only on the oblique pla
After this experience
Virilio pro po sed d they already don’t
kno w, I do n’t ha ve many customers, an d the
I was worried. I told him
, “Y ou d me to sleep on it, an
ing . Th ey wil l tak e me for a fool.” He tol re, no thi ng
really like what I’m do thing mo
lique architecture! No
’s do it! Let’s make ob thing. His idea of
next day I told him, let , because each of us bro ug ht so me
a go od pa rtn ers hip
less! It was
a of ascent.
heaviness met my ide

RISKING IT ALL
ponse?
RK What was the res .
[laughs] I could feel it..
ll – exc ep t tha t no bo dy wanted this church. me : “If yo u
CP It worked very we r tol d
r. One day the manage
construction manage , I won’t do the
Virilio was horrid to the o kee ps on ins ult ing me
this non-architect wh its per day: one in
keep coming up with ruc tio n pro cess, I did two site vis d
church!” So throughou
t the co nst iet. And then a secon
, be ca use the n the site was empty and qu d the ch urc h
the morning with Vir ilio , an
we finished it in 1966
ruction manager. Finally
one later with the const op en ing .
Virilio was invited to the
was consecrated, and
und or the wall?
fee lin g tha t yo u had reinvented the gro
RK Do you have the
ity between them?
Or the idea of continu
it so much. I did a
g wa s mix ed an d that’s why we liked
CP In the church, eve
ryt hin demolish. But the
t at a ce rta in po int people wanted to list
supermarket in Sens
tha it by placing it on the
vem en t pre ven ted them from destroying liev e it! Th is – an
preservation mo was a while ago, but
I still cannot be ss!
l mo nu me nts . Th at ne , by the en tire pre
of historica en cri tic ize d so much by everyo ll.
It ha s be toric monument as we
historical monument! h ha s been declared an his
Ne ver s Ch urc
[laughter] Now the
ange.
ed either. It’s very str
e in I did in Bo rde aux cannot be touch
RK The ho us

!
CP Ah! Shake my hand

ADHESION LIMIT mething new in

ob liq ue fun cti on to be an invention, so
the
RK Do you consider
architecture?
ed. We do not
urc h, it is cle ar tha t everything is transform
CP When you walk int
o the ch t. But we were
p to the gro un d, the equilibrium is differen
shi
have the same relation

1557
world of architecture.
standing apart from the
und...
the church from the gro
the section and the lifting of
2014 Parent sketches
PAGE 58 RAMP

rch,
denly to raise the chu

1558
organizers decided sud
nte Ber nad ette du Banlay, Nevers. “The kee p the floo r clo se to the ground by
1963 Church of Sai und. So we decided to
had a form on the gro
but our project already righ t, cre atin g a slope.”
the left and
raising the church on
 RENT
RAMP II: CLAUDE PA PAGE 59

dral of consumption.”
food” and the “cathe
et in Sens. Parent calls it “the temple of
e: Parent’s oblique supermark
1970 Shopping on a slop

street.
ped internal shopping
tion diagram, with a ram
1968 Spacial distribu

1559
s supermarket.
ng street inside the Sen
1968 Oblique shoppi
PAGE 60 RAMP

de a mistake...
ent: “I think that I ma
re prin cip e, S5: Cir culation Habitable. Par ium . The y wer e saying,
hitectu qui libr
6 Adh ere nce dia gra m by Parent, from Arc ... atta cke d by peo ple who noticed the dise
July 196 t! We were
is fine but not 50 percen
30 percent inclination there, they’re going to
fall.’”
n’t be abl e to wal k
‘People wo

is almost
s are pretty steep. Red
e Liverpool: “Blue line
tion sketch for the Tat that the space be

1560
ent sho ws the sec ons of the pro ject was
January 2014 Par ause one of the conditi and others not.
is not dangerous. Bec ps would be accessible
parallel to the floor; it we ma de the deal that some ram
ble d. So
accessible to the disa iting to me.”
tter a bit, but that’s exc
It complicates the ma
 RENT
RAMP II: CLAUDE PA PAGE 61
ture?
RK Apart ? So you left architec
who
ymont? This architect
wa s lau gh ing at us. Do you know Paul Ma e, bu t he wa s not
CP Yes, everyone a very avant-garde archit
ect of his tim
were
r the Se ine ’ wa s y “a rch ite ct. ” We
did ‘Paris unde a thi nke r wh ile we were instead ver
He wa s
a very good architect. of the feet.
ing the tac tile sen sation, the sensation
includ nt.
me extremely importa
e to sh ow yo u a dia gram which seems to be r it?
RK I would lik s. Do you remem
of different inclination
It shows the maximum tion
e... 30 percent inclina
s dia gra m. An d I thi nk that I made a mistak
CP Yes, I drew thi
nt!
is fine but not 50 perce
use you don’t raise
ion lim it,” wh ich I find fantastic, beca
RK But you wrote “a
dh es about “adhesion.”
an we liv e or wa lk there?” You just talk
the question, “C
disequilibrium.
ma inly att ac ked by people who noticed the
were to fall.”
CP That’s because we lk there, they’re going
we re say ing , “P eo ple won’t be able to wa
They
to be, or was
tha t the ob liq ue co ndition would come
nvinced
RK Were you really co
ex ag ge rat ion on your part?
is this an
orators and I used it to
a lar ge inc lined board. My collab t this
CP Once I invented a too l, um inclinations. We kep
lcu lat e go od an d ba d angles, to test maxim to the imp ac t of the
technically ca
ea rch we dis co ver ed that, in addition me nt;
gh res st important ele
board for years. Throu we re ess en tial. The foot is the mo ep ,
he sio n ver y ste
slope, materials and ad it. At my house in Neuilly, the
slopes were
usi ng
co mp are d to o tho ug ht of
the eye is nothing h carpet. I als
ch 30 pe rce nt, an d they were covered wit le use sp ec ial sho es.
they could rea proposed that peop
h as rubber, and even
adhesive material suc n
n in a house, and the
red thi s “a dh es ion limit” in a church, the the lar ge urb an
RK You first explo to
t attempts in Nevers
ions. So from the firs til the present…
also in your urban vis 66 in Ar ch ite cture Principe, up un n
applications you expla
ine d in 19 to the tragic conditio
tra jec tor y fro m op timism to skepticism
a
does this represent
n?
of the legally forbidde
the Tate museum in
cu rre ntl y designing a project for e
CP Terrible, isn’t it? Bu
tI stil l try . I’m at I did in 1970 in Venic
by [Ja me s] Sti rlin g. They remembered wh ure s. He re’s
Liverpool, in a building d scu lpt
ibition of paintings an
sign ramps for an exh ce I cannot use a
so they asked me to de ils and layers, like Le Co rbu sie r, sin
rk wit h co lor pe nc
the plan: I wo there is no fun.
complicate things or
computer. You have to
Is there a code?
ing of blue and red?
RK What’s the mean
not dangerous.
. Re d is alm os t pa rallel to the floor; it is the
CP Blue lines are pretty
ste ep ace be accessible to
co nd itio ns of the project was that the sp d oth ers no t.
Because one of the be accessible an
ma de the de al tha t some ramps would
disabled. So we iting to me.
tter a bit, but that’s exc
It complicates the ma
[Pendulum
pendulaire’ project
Do yo u rem em be r the ‘instabilisateur
RK
with Virilio?
De-stabilizer] you did
erimental house
y 68 be ga n. We wanted to make an exp d
CP It was in 68, just wh
en Ma where I would have live
ng s sus pe nd ed 10 meters above ground, wit h Vir ilio .

1561
made of two dwelli I didn’t really want to
live
lly two houses because
with Virilio. It is actua
er. It was published
ole Parent, Claude’s sist
m bas ed on the obl ique developed by Nic and trai ning on the ramp.
nastics progra gymnastics performanc
es
1972 L’Inclipan: a gym tau ght adv oca ting
nted classes she
in 1972 and compleme
PAGE 62 RAMP

, Nanterre.
abilisateur Pendulaire
olution,” Parent and Virilio propose the Inst
oblique function is the urban rev
1968 Declaring “The

le,

1562
at the Venice Art Bienna
Parents des igns the French Pavilion
with a group of artists,
1970 An oblique test: to the oblique.
sca pe dev ote d
an interior land

Instabilisateur Pendul
1968 Left and above:
live in one hou se,
Parent would
RENT
RAMP II: CLAUDE PA PAGE 63
have
uld meet and discuss. People would
on point where we co
There was just a juncti
fed us via strings.
os.
RK Like in Mount Ath
days. But then May 68
ing no one else for 15
en enclosed inside, see
CP We would have be d.
y and it was all cancelle
started in the universit
OF NEUILLY
THE LIVING SLOPE e?
l us ab out the Neuilly hous
RK Can you tel
m in houses as well.
nt tha t he proposed that I try the one
CP Virilio found the ram
ps so ple asa pes: one for living and
did . In the Ne uill y house we built two slo sid e, yo u ca n
And so that’s what we es of spaces. On the
living
ll separates the two typ
for dining. A glass wa a lar ge var iet y of wa ys.
the slope and rest in
adapt your position to this
above the other. Did
de for the slo pe , with two planes, one
RK The table is ma of interaction?
a more intense form
arrangement make for on.
d a dominated situati
like it be ca use the re was a dominant an gu est s at the
CP Some people didn’t the important
wit h tha t. I use d to put my wife Naad and at the bo tto m
Of course, I played t him
Talabot came and I pu
critic [Gérald] Gassiot- ’t that terrible!
top. But once, the art use he wa s low est . Isn
ted. He felt bad beca effect on men.
part, which he really ha tha t the sp ac e could have such an
g] We ne ver ima gin ed
[laug hin
s
ch other. The slope wa
nte d all the flo ors to be different from ea m un de rne ath , so it felt
At the time I wa t. In so me areas there was foa
completely covered wit
h bla ck ca rpe le would feel and be
it,
rt of sig na l [la ughs]. Suddenly peop
like a cushion... witho
ut an y so ling. We called this
bu t mo st did n’t like this unexpected fee
completely surprised
– s ever interested in it.
“th e cu ltu re of tac tility.” But nobody wa
phenomenon
sense that some
ip be tw ee n the slo pe and gender? In the
sh
RK Is there a relation men for example?
women and others for
slopes are better for
s inclined, designed
sid e so me slopes were a little les
CP It is best for restin
g. On the livi ng pes on each side of
e, pe op le wo uld sit on more inclined slo
for resting. On the din
ing sid nts in order to create
le. We co uld als o add embedded eleme y.
the double-level tab for the house every da
s drawing a new slope
horizontal planes. I wa
RK How did you stop?
.
had to finish the house
CP Simply because I
house?
otos of people in the
RK And the famous ph in
d a studio on symbolism
up of stu de nts wh o had chosen me to lea bo lism in the ob liqu e
CP It was a gro est iga te wh eth er there was sym tive .
nted to inv rely sensory persp ec
architecture. They wa the ob liqu e was born from a pu
re is no t:
function. In reality the
RK Intuitive? in
ppens. There is no bra
yo u’r e sta nd ing on a flat plane, nothing ha an d eu ph ori a
CP Yes, intuitive. When climbing
you feel a force when
1563
e, you have feelings; that displease people
activity. On the obliqu ba sis. The oblique cre ate s sha pe s
sce nt. Th is is the
during the de
to feel off balance.
because they don’t like
10 meters in the air.
ped houses elevated
aire, Nanterre; a proposal for two ram
Virilio in the other.
PAGE 64 RAMP

ce of 14 x 5 meters,
se. In the elongated spa
adding ramps to one floor of his own hou
ent with the oblique by
ent decides to experim
1973 Neuilly ramp: Par g (lef t) and din ing side (right).
e areas with a livin
he creates two obliqu

le?
g room areas: ers for men for examp
1973 Sketch of the livin e slopes are bet ter for women and oth
pe and gender ? In the sense that som
ship between the slo ple would sit
RK Is there a relation . On the dining side, peo
e a little less incl ined , designed for resting er to cre ate hor izon tal planes.
wer in ord
t for res ting . On the living side some slopes We cou ld also add embedded elements
CP It is bes double-level table.
es on each side of the
on more inclined slop

1564
slop e for the hou se every day.
I was drawing a new
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the inside...
reveal the oblique on
from the outside does not
1952 The Neuilly house

1565
inated situation.
a dominant and a dom
e peo ple did n’t like it because there was But onc e, the art critic
ique dining area: Som top .
1973 Sketch of the obl important guests at the lowest.
tha t. I use d to put my wife Naad and the rea lly hat ed. He felt bad because he was
he
Of course, I played with at the bot tom par t, whi ch
on men.”
ot came and I put him ld have such an effect
[Gérald] Gassiot-Talab ed that the space cou
t tha t terr ible ! [lau ghing] We never imagin
Isn’
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1566
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1567
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1568
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e Fourcade and Claude

uding Serge Colas, Ann
ll gro up of stu den ts from Versailles incl t) invi tes the students for a visit to
the
by a sma ow shir
on ‘sym bol ism in architecture,’ initiated Naa d (in ora nge ), Parent (grey suit, yell was sym bol ism in the oblique function.
1974 A studio Together with his wife r there
er Parent’s mentorship. to investigate whethe
Fort, takes place und oblique. “They wanted
ishe d in 197 3) to sho w the possiblities of the spe ctiv e.”
Neuilly house (fin per
from a purely sensory
the oblique was born
In reality there is not:

1569
. It is not about
of being a guinea pig
ure or exp erie nce , I never had the feeling the mo st dyn am ic, mobile,
e is not an advent lligent ways of living.
One of
1999 “Living the obliqu st nat ura l and inte hite ctu re in whi ch you live,
ique is one of the mo you complicit in the arc
a concept. Living obl and hea lthy.* It ma kes lly ma kes you keep in
, interactive, natural space and people, and
fina
progressive, renewable of life, dev elo ping your sensitivity to
r way
it makes you rethink you
, daughter, in Privileged.
shape.” Chloé Parent
 PAGE 70 RAMP

g the initial ram

Silvia Monfort, showin
1991 Section of Théâtre

id..
aling around the pyram
additional ramps spir
of the former abattoi rs, the sketches show
rt. While using the existing access ramp
the théâtre Silvia Monfo
1988 Early sketches for

ps...“
re dangerous than ram
. I had to draw in bleachers that are a lot mo
the construction permit
e refused to give me
onfort: “The firemen twic
1992 Théâtre Silvia-M

1570
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ing her to come and

oo l my da ug hter’s friends were ask the
The children loved it.
Aft er sch re playing marbles on
d the y we re ha vin g a good time; they we an d he tol d me:
play in our house. An se kids, who has become
a writer now,
up set
y I me t on e of the his fat he r, rea lly
slopes. Recentl
liqu e fun cti on !” Ap parently at the time ha s no
“We were playing on
the ob d of thing
very seriously, “This kin
t ho w int ere ste d he was, was warning him
abou
future” [laughs]
e,
ACQUA ALTA re another experienc
rie nc e is no t ba se d on the grotto, is the
RK If this type of expe slope?
the discovery of the
point, that led you to
a prototype, a flash
San Marco and I
the “a cq ua alt a.” I was in the Piazza y
cture ramping the pyr
am id.
CP Once, I went to Ve
nice an d saw g out of the ground ver
tial ramp as a cladding stru
wh at’ s ha pp en ing !” The water was comin my sel f, wh at
said to my wife, “Loo
k y. I said to
ape. It was a discover
holes. We had to esc d… when suddenly
quickly through small ch ange of condition fro m the gro un
en om en on , thi s
a wonderful ph .
t you are not able to see
you feel something tha ing the
are only further reduc
be rej ec ted by eve ryone. Today firemen co nst ruc tio n
We knew we would d to give me the
Sil via Mo nfo rt the ater, they twice refuse ng ero us tha n ram ps ...
pyramid.. ramps. For the
ac he rs, wh ich are in fact a lot more da
in ble
permit. I had to draw

s...“

1571
PAGE 72 RAMP

res.
surrounded by sculptu
black bath tub in the centre of the office,
e, highly choreographed with a the
2014 Parent’s new hom

vented
servation movement pre
to demolish. But the pre I still cannot believe it!
2014 Parent
s tha t at a cer tain point people wanted was a whi le ago , but
”I did a supermarket
in Sen ents. That ghter] Now the Nevers
list of historical monum by the entire press! [lau
it by placing it on the so much by everyone,
them from destroying has bee n crit iciz ed
nument! It
This – an historical mo ent as well.
lared an historic monum

1572
Church has been dec
y strange.
touch either. It’s ver
Bordeaux cannot be
RK The house I did in
d!
CP Ah! Shake my han
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opening in July 2014.

Tate liverpool exhibiton
Model of the oblique

1573
g
l a force when climbin
have feelings; you fee
re is no bra in act ivity. On the oblique, you y don ’t like to fee l off balance.”
happens. The ause the
on a flat plane, nothing displease people bec
“When you’re standing e creates shapes that
the des cen t. This is the basis. The obliqu
and euphoria dur ing