White and wood, fluid and refined volumes, curved and circular shapes from floor to ceiling following the lines of the building, in reference to the movement of sea waves, and, above all, natural or artificial light, these are the outline of the project to renovate the spaces of the maritime museum which had not undergone any transformation since its installation, in 1943, in the west wing of the former Palais du Trocadéro. Unlike its neighbors: the City of Architecture and Heritage (and its Museum of French Monuments), the Théâtre national de Chaillot and the Musée de l’Homme.
It was the Parisian agency H2O, in collaboration with the Norwegian agency Snøhetta (mainly concerned with entry and reception-ticketing) which won this major competition in 2017 (among 117 applications), with the interventions of chief architect of Historical Monuments Lionel Dubois (studies and start of construction) then Pierre Bortolussi (from 2021). The scenographic project of the British agency Casson Mann – it opened an office in Paris in 2019 and became known for the “Lascaux IV” cave center next to the famous cave, the Cité du vin in Bordeaux, the Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie de Lyon, Nottingham Castle in Great Britain, the Palais de la Découverte and the Palais du Tau in Reims, both planned for 2025 – have been added, with monumental and immersive installations, to the grandiose scale of this new maritime museum is resolutely in the contemporary era.
The two architectural agencies “worked on their side to avoid being influenced and then compared their proposals in order to bring out a vision adapted to the specificities of this museum and its specifications”: redefining the spaces to increase the cultural offer and attractiveness, create a friendly reception area, bring the entire museum up to standard, bring new spaces such as the 80-seat restaurant entrusted to Monument Café, the shop managed by Arteum, a modular and retractable auditorium with 200 seats, places for seminars and conferences on the mezzanine overlooking the galleries with their matte white screen-printed glass walls.
For those who don’t know it, H2O architects, whose founders Jean-Jacques and Charlotte Hubert were joined, three years after its creation, in 2008, by Antoine Santiard, has distinguished itself in the renovation of buildings, favoring “a analysis of situations and a process of elaboration by hypotheses”, so that their minimally invasive intervention sometimes seems invisible, as at the museum of modern art in the city of Paris. Winners of the “Europe 40 Under 40” Prize in 2014 for those under 40, they were notably the coordinators of the transformation of the Reuilly barracks (Paris 12th), the Saint-Germain block (Paris 7th) and the Maison Saint-Charles (Paris 15th).
As for Snøhetta, named after the highest point of the Dovrefjell massif, 2,286 meters above sea level, its reputation is well established. It has been headquartered in Oslo since 1989 and brings together more than 350 employees in 8 agencies. Crowned with the Aga Khan Prize (2004) for the Library of Alexandria, Mies van der Rohe (2009) for the Oslo Opera House and Global Award for Sustainable Architecture (2010) for her achievements linked to the environment, she has multiplied projects in France: from the Mediterranean Neurology Institute (INMed) in Marseille, to “Lascaux 4”, the new headquarters of Le Monde, to the renovation of the Carnavalet museum and the Amandiers theater in Nanterre, up to the creation of the new “Les Lumières Pleyel” district in Saint-Denis, as part of Greater Paris.
The renovation of the maritime museum was thus designed in four hands, to achieve “a fair balance between history and future,” confides Antoine Santiard, and to highlight the existing with functional additions, such as the mezzanines.” Initially built for the Universal Exhibition of 1878, the Palais du Trocadéro designed by Davioud and Bourdais was transformed by Carlu, Boileau and Azéma for the Universal Exhibition of 1937, by doubling the thickness of the large gallery.
What language is adopted in this historic heritage site? The idea was to restore the original volumes and harmonious proportions of the majestic spaces of 1937, by enhancing the large continuous curve with its glass roof covered with blade blinds to protect against the heat which constitutes the main line of the building, from the Head Pavilion to the About Pavilion, at the other end. On the latter side, the three oculi designed by Carlu in 1937 – but not realized – were unblocked to provide light and a view of the Eiffel Tower. Majestic, the old white concrete staircase has been reopened, to create a new circulation with the basement and allow a loop tour. A new access for the works has been created on the Trocadéro side, and the terraces have been restored.
A sinuous metal marking on the ground accompanies the visitor along the route. It begins with a black entrance, like in the dark hold of a boat, with its ceiling of mirror-polished LEDs (5 light animation programs), to progress towards the white spaces of the three galleries, each of approximately 500m2. , brought to life by the monumental scenography of the Casson Mann agency. This is designed as immersive crossings with its stacked orange containers, its giant bow of a ship housing a 360-degree screen, its giant digital wave animated by projections. And leaves the choice to the public to follow their own course.
White and wood, fluid and refined volumes, curved shapes following the lines of the building, in reference to the movement of the sea, all in a bath of light: these are the main lines of the project to renovate the spaces of the National Museum of the navy, which had not undergone any transformation since its installation in 1943 in the west wing of the former Palais du Trocadéro. Unlike its neighbors: the City of Architecture and Heritage (and its Museum of French Monuments), the Théâtre national de Chaillot and the Musée de l’homme.
It was the Parisian agency h2o, agent, in collaboration with the Norwegian Snøhetta (for entry and reception-ticketing), which won this major competition in 2017 (among 117 applications), with the interventions of chief architect of Historical Monuments Lionel Dubois (studies and start of construction), then Pierre Bortolussi (from 2021). The scenographic project of the British agency Casson Mann, which opened an office in Paris in 2019, has been grafted, with monumental and immersive installations, onto the grandiose scale of this new Maritime Museum resolutely aiming to be the contemporary era.
The two architectural agencies “worked on their side to not let themselves be influenced and then compared their proposals in order to bring out a vision adapted to the specificities of this museum and its specifications”: redefining the spaces to increase the cultural offer and attractiveness, create a friendly reception area, bring the entire museum up to standard, provide new spaces, such as the 80-seat restaurant entrusted to Monument Café, the shop managed by Arteum, a modular auditorium and retractable with 200 seats, places for seminars and conferences on the mezzanine overlooking the galleries with their matte white screen-printed glass walls.
For those who don’t know it, h2o Architectes, whose founders Jean-Jacques and Charlotte Hubert were joined, three years after its creation, in 2008, by Antoine Santiard, has distinguished itself in the renovation of buildings, favoring ” an analysis of situations and a process of elaboration by hypotheses”, so much so that its intervention, minimally invasive, sometimes seems invisible, as at the Museum of Modern Art of the city of Paris. Winners of the Europe 40 Under 40 prize in 2014 for those under 40, they were the coordinators of the transformation of the Reuilly barracks (Paris 12th), the Saint-Germain block (Paris 7th) and the Maison Saint-Charles (Paris 15th).
As for Snøhetta, named after the highest point of the Dovrefjell massif, 2,286 meters above sea level, its reputation is well established. The agency has been headquartered in Oslo since 1989, with more than 350 employees in 8 agencies. Crowned with the Aga Khan Prize (2004) for the Library of Alexandria, Mies van der Rohe (2009) for the Oslo Opera House and Global Award for Sustainable Architecture (2010) for her achievements linked to the environment, she has multiplied projects in France: from the Institute of Neurology of the Mediterranean, in Marseille, to Lascaux 4, from the new headquarters of Le Monde to the renovation of the Carnavalet Museum and the Théâtre des Amandiers in Nanterre to the creation of the new Les Lumières district Pleyel in Saint-Denis, as part of Greater Paris.
The renovation of the Maritime Museum was thus designed with four hands, to achieve “a fair balance between history and future,” confides Antoine Santiard, “and to highlight the existing with functional additions such as the mezzanines.” Built for the Universal Exhibition of 1878, the Palais du Trocadéro, designed by Davioud and Bourdais, was transformed by Carlu, Boileau and Azéma for the Universal Exhibition of 1937, by doubling the thickness of the large gallery.
Read the fileNational Maritime Museum: the sea wind blows at the Trocadéro
What language should we adopt in this major heritage site? The idea was to restore the original volumes and harmonious proportions of the 1937 spaces, by enhancing the large continuous curve with its glass roof covered with slatted blinds to protect against the heat. On the side of the About pavilion, the three oculi designed by Carlu in 1937 – but not realized – were unblocked to provide light and a view of the Eiffel Tower. Majestic, the old white concrete staircase has been reopened to create a new circulation with the basement and allow a loop visit. A new access for the works has been created on the Trocadéro side, and the terraces restored.
A sinuous metal marking on the ground accompanies the visitor. It begins with a black entrance, like in the dark hold of a boat, with its mirror-polished LED ceiling (five light animation programs), to progress towards the white spaces of the three galleries, of approximately 500 m2 each. , brought to life by the monumental scenography of the Casson Mann agency. This is designed as immersive crossings with its yellow stacked containers, its giant bow of a ship housing a hemispherical screen, its giant digital wave animated by projections. And leaves the choice to the public to follow their own course.