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Article: Green gauge. (Maison de l'Environnement, Belfort, France)
- Article from:
- The Architectural Review
- Article date:
- November 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 EMAP Architecture. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Lucien Kroll's little ecological interpretation centre at Belfort suggests to the future how an official building can be humanised, and a gentle programme be given appropriate monumentality.
Belfort lies in eastern France, in hilly country called the Ballon d'Alsace, close to the German border which was fought over for centuries. Visiting the old city centre, one can hardly overlook the extensive city fortifications which were not abandoned until the First World War, but one also senses that this troubled history has produced a local culture of vitality and independence. The city lies in a broad valley into which streams descend from the Vosges on one side and the ...