Palais de l’Europe, constructed by Henry Bernard between 1972 and 1977
106 x 106 x 38 m
With (in order of appearance):
Marija Pejčinović Burić, Secretary General of the Council of Europe (2019-2024)
Gauthier Bolle, Professor of architectural history and culture at the École nationale supérieure d’architecture, Strasbourg
Pap Ndiaye, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe
Catherine Lalumière, former Secretary General of the Council of Europe (1989-1994)
Sound archive: Valéry Giscard d’Estaing
Producer: Council of Europe
Co-producer: Micro-sillons
Concept: Charlotte Roux, Antoine Auger
Authors: Charlotte Roux, Antoine Auger, Anne Kropotkine
To find out more:
Gauthier Bolle, “L’architecture du quartier européen à Strasbourg depuis 1949 : enjeux locaux d’un développement institutionnel supranational”, In Situ: Revue des patrimoines, 2019
Transcription
Opening titles: L'Atelier de l'Europe, discovering the Council of Europe’s art collection.
The Palais de l'Europe by Henry Bernard, with Marija Pejčinović Burić, Gauthier Bolle, Pap Ndiaye, Catherine Lalumière and, from the sound archives, the voice of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing.
Sound archives: The President of the Republic spent a few hours in Strasbourg this afternoon, to inaugurate the new headquarters of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament.
Sound archives - Valéry Giscard d'Estaing: The construction of a building always symbolises hope and vitality. But how much more so when that building is the common home of 19 European nations!
Marija Pejčinović Burić: The Palais de l'Europe was designed by the French architect Henry Bernard, known for his creation of the Maison de la Radio in Paris. It was inaugurated in 1977 by President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing.
Sound archives: The new Palais is a very modern building, massive from the outside, harmonious on the inside, decorated in a contemporary style. It went against the grain for those who, in 1977, wanted to see another Palais Bourbon or a neo-House of Commons.
Gauthier Bolle: And, aesthetically speaking, the Palais de l’Europe has something of a split personality. What you see from the outside is a rather austere, massive building with clear-cut lines.
Marija Pejčinović Burić: The Palais has a square base measuring 106 metres on each side and rises to a height of 38 metres, split between nine floors.
Gauthier Bolle: The level at which you access the building is raised as well, so it looks down on what is below and is somewhat imposing in relation to the surrounding area. And the outer line of the building, punctuated by concrete buttresses, is set by a succession of large conference rooms. There are a dozen or so such rooms forming the outer wall of this fortress.
Marija Pejčinović Burić: There are three predominant colours: the pink concrete of the basement walls, the aluminium forming the gridlines of the facade and the brown tint of the large windows of the conference rooms.
Gauthier Bolle: There’s this coloured concrete which copies the colour of - and even includes in its composition - Vosges sandstone, which is the local stone used for edifices such as Strasbourg cathedral. You can also see, when standing outside for example, that the facades have a slight slope to them.
Marija Pejčinović Burić: And that suggests the base of an uncompleted pyramid, symbolising the efforts of the different nations to converge towards unity.
Gauthier Bolle: On the inside, in contrast, there is a somewhat softer style with curves, organically shaped elements and the arched timber frame of the plenary chamber as a truly impressive centrepiece.
Marija Pejčinović Burić: The twelve mahogany arches supporting the structure are the most original feature. Twelve, like the number of stars on the European flag.
Gauthier Bolle: It’s this desire to produce a total piece of art, right down to the designs of the chairs and other furniture. It’s a very colourful style too. You can really see chromatic colour schemes using extremely warm tints of reds, yellows and browns, with geometric forms alternating on the walls, a bit like frescoes, and ceilings and lights. So all these lines ultimately form geometric patterns, extending across every surface to accentuate this very warm atmosphere inside the building.
Sound archives - Valéry Giscard d'Estaing: It is no coincidence that, in the buildings we are inaugurating today, the assembly chamber is right in the centre. It is the ongoing dialogue facilitated by that chamber between elected representatives of the peoples and representatives of their governments, between the Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers, that makes the Council of Europe such an original and dynamic organisation.
Gauthier Bolle: We have the assembly chamber sitting in the middle of a kind of grand interior courtyard. And then, at one corner of the building, there is the Committee of Ministers meeting room jutting out in the form of a rotunda. So in the architecture, we can actually see the powers that characterise the institutional structure of the Council of Europe.
Pap Ndiaye: The Palais de l'Europe is a truly fine building but it is also a place that is animated. It is animated by the great many people who work in it but it is also animated by a spirit. That spirit is materialised by artworks, and occasionally by the musical notes that ring out from concerts. All that goes towards making this place, the Palais de l'Europe, a living place.
Gauthier Bolle: Henry Bernard said that you have to think of this building as an art gallery. He was all for the idea that, I quote, “the building constitutes in itself a permanent exhibition of European contemporary art whose influence on world art remains paramount”. So he was really keen to make this place a showcase for artworks donated by Council of Europe member states.
Catherine Lalumière: It is a tradition that every country joining the Council of Europe marks the occasion by donating an artwork symbolising the message it wishes to convey. It is also an opportunity to publicise the work of an artist the country is proud of, so it is all good PR.
Marija Pejčinović Burić: Since its creation, the Council of Europe has been given artworks by its member states, particularly by France. There are now some 150 artworks in its possession: paintings, tapestries and sculptures here and there, mainly in the Palais de l'Europe but also in the Human Rights Building and the surrounding areas.
Catherine Lalumière: Each work is interesting in its own right of course, but for me it is the juxtaposition that is fascinating because we can see a mosaic of legacies and cultural heritage. And that is what Europe is all about. But over thousands of years we have also developed a common core of values, and those humanist values are here too. The variety of artworks is transcended by that common core. There are powerful ideas that we share and must be ingrained in our minds. And those are our fundamental values.
Closing credits: That was The Palais de l'Europe by Henry Bernard, a Council of Europe podcast, created by Charlotte Roux, Antoine Auger and Anne Kropotkine, with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Marija Pejčinović Burić, Professor of architectural history and culture Gauthier Bolle, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of France to the Council of Europe Pap Ndiaye, former Secretary General of the Council of Europe Catherine Lalumière and, from the sound archives, the voice of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. Other episodes are available on the Council of Europe website.
