Sub-series
Opera Houses
CI001.S2.D3
Description:
Charles Rohault de Fleury's sustained involvement with the design of opera houses began with his appointment in 1846 as official architect of the existing Salle Le Pelletier, home to the *Paris Opera, and continued until an open competition was called in 1860 (Charles Garnier won this competition). During this period Rohault de Fleury submitted numerous proposals to replace theprovisional Salle Le Pelletier with a structure more appropriate to the grandeur and importance of France's national opera company. The CCA collection contains four projects related to his work for the Paris opera: two early projects (1846 and 1847) and one later one (1859) for a newopera house, and a portfolio of lithographs and drawings related to alterations and repairs to Salle Le Pelletier (1850-1854). The collection also includes Charles' earliest theatre project, a comprehensive plan for an opera house and surrounding infrastructure for the Theatre Royal Italien opera company (1838-1840), and an album containing drawings and prints of antique and contemporary theatres (1839-1854?). Charles' first project was for the Theatre Royal Italien opera company whose previous home, the Salle Favart, had burned down on the night of January 14 1838. The CCA collection contains an album of presentation drawings for a new theatre located on rue de la Paix with boutiques in the adjacent 'passages' (DR1974:0002:019:001-023). A second album consists of site plans including proposed 'maisons à loyers' (apartment buildings) and documents relating to the cost estimates and rental income for the entire project (DR1974:0002:036:001-016). The architectural style and interior arrangement of the theatre is heavily indebted to Francois Debret's Salle Le Pelletier. Charles' originality lies more in his conception of the social and economic role of the theatre in relation and integration, to its surrounding urban fabric. An explanation of the entire Theatre Royal Italien project, and Charles' role as architect in it, is found in two proposal letters (located in the Avery Library, Columbia University, NY) written by the entrepreneur Eugene Lecomte to the Minister of the Interior, Comte Duchatel, on May 15 and October 31 1839 (1). Charles' album of drawings at the CCA for the theatre and some of the cost and rental estimates are probably presentation copies directly related to the first letter, and most likely submitted to the Minister of the Interior. Charles' project was never executed, and the Italian opera company eventualy found a permanent home in the existing Salle Ventadour (1841). However, the inclusive nature of the Théâtre Royal Italien proposal, with its stress on urban development and contextuality, continued to play a seminal role in his later Paris Opera projects. Upon replacing Francois Debret as architect of Salle Le Pelletier in 1846, Charles proposed nine possible locations (site plans) for a new opera house for the Paris Opera (*Academie Royale de Musique) and, in the following year (1847) prepared a portfolio of drawings for the actual structure with an accompanying seven-page manuscript describing the project. Although executed in successive years, the site plans and 1847 drawings are conceptually related. Both components were undertaken in response to offical interest in a public competition that was never implemented (2)(3). The CCA has two sets of the nine site plans proposed in 1846 (DR1974:0002:036:001-016), one containing transfer lithographed site plans with a written analysis and cost estimate for each of the proposed locations, and the other with only the site plans (similar sets are located in the 'Archives Nationales' in France). They indicate that Charles, (heavily influenced by his Théâtre Royal Italien project) preferred the Rue de la Paix location (siteplan #3) for the new opera house. Although site plan number six, Boulevard des Capucines, was not favoured at this date, it is highly prophetic as it was the location officially chosen in 1860 for the new opera house. Apparently unique to the CCA collection is the 1847 manuscript and portfolio of drawings for the proposed opera house (DR1974:0002:036:001-016). The manuscript is both an indepth review of the requirements for a national opera house and a guide to his portfolio of drawings. Charles' conception and design continued to be strongly influenced by Debret's Salle Lepelletier, as well as his own Théâtre Italien project, and various antique and contemporary opera houses and theatres. Many of the French and Italian sources mentioned in the manuscript are collected in an album (DR1974:0002:010:001-048) as references for his own designs (4). As official architect of Salle Le pelletier, Charles was also responsible for repairs, restorations, and alterations to the existing structure. The drawings and transfer lithographs in the CCA collection (DR1974:0002:036:001-016) are primarily dated 1854, and relate to documented repair and restoration projects undertaken during this period (5)(6). The CCA collection has the presentation drawings and lithographs for the later 1859 project (DR1974:0002:027:001-027) for the Paris opera (*Theatre Imperiale de l'opera) that were sent to Achille Fould, the Minister of State. This project is probably a counterpart to a similiar one that he submitted to the Prefect of the Seine, Baron Haussmann, in the same year (7). Site plans show the opera house on an irregular polygonal site facing Boulevard des Capucines. The placement of the 'maisons à loyers' on the rear of the site reflects Charles' continued emphasis on integrating his opera projects into the surrounding urban context. In 1859, it appeared that Charles was favoured to build the new opera house. But late in the following year, a public competition was called in which Charles Garnier emerged as the victor. Although Charles did not build the final structure, his numerous projects, as exemplified in the CCA collection, were of prime importance in determining the location, configuration, and plan of the Place de l'Opera (8). * The 'Paris Opera' was France's national opera, and thus its name changed numerous times throughout its history according to altering perceptions of its role in French culture and/or changes in political regimes. For reasons of clarity, the national opera will be referred to as the Paris Opera. The names indicated in brackets with a star refer to the proper name of the opera company at the date of the project. (1) Eugene Le Comte, "Projet de Salle rue de la Paix, pour le Théâtre Royal Italien: Lettres à Monsieur le Ministre de l'Intérieur, en date des 15 mai et 31octobre 1839" (Paris: P. Dupont, 1839). (2) Christopher Curtis Mead, "Charles Garnier's Paris Opera and the Renaissance of Classicism in Nineteenth century French Architecture", 3 vols. (PhD thesis; Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1986), p. 234 and p. 956, fn. 30. (3) Monika Steinhauser, "Die Architektur des Pariser Oper" (Munich: Prestel Verlag, 1969), p. 45, fns. 143 and 144. (4) Barry Bergdoll, "Charles Rohault de Fleury: Part Three: Theatres and the Opera house", 'CCA Research Report', n.d., p. 3. (5) Larousse XIXth Century, s.v. "Rohault de Fleury, Charles". (6) Mead, p. 238. (7) Oeuvres de C. Rohault de Fleury, architecte" (Paris: Librarie centrale d'architecture, 1884).. (8) Macmillan, s.v. "Rohault de Fleury Familly".
1717-1868
Opera Houses
CI001.S2.D3
Description:
Charles Rohault de Fleury's sustained involvement with the design of opera houses began with his appointment in 1846 as official architect of the existing Salle Le Pelletier, home to the *Paris Opera, and continued until an open competition was called in 1860 (Charles Garnier won this competition). During this period Rohault de Fleury submitted numerous proposals to replace theprovisional Salle Le Pelletier with a structure more appropriate to the grandeur and importance of France's national opera company. The CCA collection contains four projects related to his work for the Paris opera: two early projects (1846 and 1847) and one later one (1859) for a newopera house, and a portfolio of lithographs and drawings related to alterations and repairs to Salle Le Pelletier (1850-1854). The collection also includes Charles' earliest theatre project, a comprehensive plan for an opera house and surrounding infrastructure for the Theatre Royal Italien opera company (1838-1840), and an album containing drawings and prints of antique and contemporary theatres (1839-1854?). Charles' first project was for the Theatre Royal Italien opera company whose previous home, the Salle Favart, had burned down on the night of January 14 1838. The CCA collection contains an album of presentation drawings for a new theatre located on rue de la Paix with boutiques in the adjacent 'passages' (DR1974:0002:019:001-023). A second album consists of site plans including proposed 'maisons à loyers' (apartment buildings) and documents relating to the cost estimates and rental income for the entire project (DR1974:0002:036:001-016). The architectural style and interior arrangement of the theatre is heavily indebted to Francois Debret's Salle Le Pelletier. Charles' originality lies more in his conception of the social and economic role of the theatre in relation and integration, to its surrounding urban fabric. An explanation of the entire Theatre Royal Italien project, and Charles' role as architect in it, is found in two proposal letters (located in the Avery Library, Columbia University, NY) written by the entrepreneur Eugene Lecomte to the Minister of the Interior, Comte Duchatel, on May 15 and October 31 1839 (1). Charles' album of drawings at the CCA for the theatre and some of the cost and rental estimates are probably presentation copies directly related to the first letter, and most likely submitted to the Minister of the Interior. Charles' project was never executed, and the Italian opera company eventualy found a permanent home in the existing Salle Ventadour (1841). However, the inclusive nature of the Théâtre Royal Italien proposal, with its stress on urban development and contextuality, continued to play a seminal role in his later Paris Opera projects. Upon replacing Francois Debret as architect of Salle Le Pelletier in 1846, Charles proposed nine possible locations (site plans) for a new opera house for the Paris Opera (*Academie Royale de Musique) and, in the following year (1847) prepared a portfolio of drawings for the actual structure with an accompanying seven-page manuscript describing the project. Although executed in successive years, the site plans and 1847 drawings are conceptually related. Both components were undertaken in response to offical interest in a public competition that was never implemented (2)(3). The CCA has two sets of the nine site plans proposed in 1846 (DR1974:0002:036:001-016), one containing transfer lithographed site plans with a written analysis and cost estimate for each of the proposed locations, and the other with only the site plans (similar sets are located in the 'Archives Nationales' in France). They indicate that Charles, (heavily influenced by his Théâtre Royal Italien project) preferred the Rue de la Paix location (siteplan #3) for the new opera house. Although site plan number six, Boulevard des Capucines, was not favoured at this date, it is highly prophetic as it was the location officially chosen in 1860 for the new opera house. Apparently unique to the CCA collection is the 1847 manuscript and portfolio of drawings for the proposed opera house (DR1974:0002:036:001-016). The manuscript is both an indepth review of the requirements for a national opera house and a guide to his portfolio of drawings. Charles' conception and design continued to be strongly influenced by Debret's Salle Lepelletier, as well as his own Théâtre Italien project, and various antique and contemporary opera houses and theatres. Many of the French and Italian sources mentioned in the manuscript are collected in an album (DR1974:0002:010:001-048) as references for his own designs (4). As official architect of Salle Le pelletier, Charles was also responsible for repairs, restorations, and alterations to the existing structure. The drawings and transfer lithographs in the CCA collection (DR1974:0002:036:001-016) are primarily dated 1854, and relate to documented repair and restoration projects undertaken during this period (5)(6). The CCA collection has the presentation drawings and lithographs for the later 1859 project (DR1974:0002:027:001-027) for the Paris opera (*Theatre Imperiale de l'opera) that were sent to Achille Fould, the Minister of State. This project is probably a counterpart to a similiar one that he submitted to the Prefect of the Seine, Baron Haussmann, in the same year (7). Site plans show the opera house on an irregular polygonal site facing Boulevard des Capucines. The placement of the 'maisons à loyers' on the rear of the site reflects Charles' continued emphasis on integrating his opera projects into the surrounding urban context. In 1859, it appeared that Charles was favoured to build the new opera house. But late in the following year, a public competition was called in which Charles Garnier emerged as the victor. Although Charles did not build the final structure, his numerous projects, as exemplified in the CCA collection, were of prime importance in determining the location, configuration, and plan of the Place de l'Opera (8). * The 'Paris Opera' was France's national opera, and thus its name changed numerous times throughout its history according to altering perceptions of its role in French culture and/or changes in political regimes. For reasons of clarity, the national opera will be referred to as the Paris Opera. The names indicated in brackets with a star refer to the proper name of the opera company at the date of the project. (1) Eugene Le Comte, "Projet de Salle rue de la Paix, pour le Théâtre Royal Italien: Lettres à Monsieur le Ministre de l'Intérieur, en date des 15 mai et 31octobre 1839" (Paris: P. Dupont, 1839). (2) Christopher Curtis Mead, "Charles Garnier's Paris Opera and the Renaissance of Classicism in Nineteenth century French Architecture", 3 vols. (PhD thesis; Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1986), p. 234 and p. 956, fn. 30. (3) Monika Steinhauser, "Die Architektur des Pariser Oper" (Munich: Prestel Verlag, 1969), p. 45, fns. 143 and 144. (4) Barry Bergdoll, "Charles Rohault de Fleury: Part Three: Theatres and the Opera house", 'CCA Research Report', n.d., p. 3. (5) Larousse XIXth Century, s.v. "Rohault de Fleury, Charles". (6) Mead, p. 238. (7) Oeuvres de C. Rohault de Fleury, architecte" (Paris: Librarie centrale d'architecture, 1884).. (8) Macmillan, s.v. "Rohault de Fleury Familly".
File 3
1717-1868
Hubert Damisch, 2003-2004 CCA Mellon Senior Fellow, examines Blur – the cloud building created by New York architects Diller + Scofidio on lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, which is the most recent and radical expression of the desire for fluidity and evanescence in architecture – and the consequences that it might have on the future of structural thought. Damisch examines(...)
Paul Desmarais Theatre
8 May 2003
Hubert Damisch: “Effacer l’architecture?”
Actions:
Description:
Hubert Damisch, 2003-2004 CCA Mellon Senior Fellow, examines Blur – the cloud building created by New York architects Diller + Scofidio on lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, which is the most recent and radical expression of the desire for fluidity and evanescence in architecture – and the consequences that it might have on the future of structural thought. Damisch examines(...)
Paul Desmarais Theatre
The history of architecture addresses the relationships between spaces, buildings, urban geometries, and social practices—it tells us how an experience of space corresponds to an experience of the world. To this end, this lecture will analyze the sixteenth-century debate around the completion of the facade of the Basilica of San Petronio in Bologna, partially built in the(...)
Paul Desmarais Theatre Keyword(s):
Guido Beltramini, church of San Petronio, Bologna, Andrea Palladio, Baldassare Peruzzi, Giacomo da Vignola
5 October 2017, 6:30pm
Guido Beltramini, what was history for patrons and architects in Bologna in 1579?
Actions:
Description:
The history of architecture addresses the relationships between spaces, buildings, urban geometries, and social practices—it tells us how an experience of space corresponds to an experience of the world. To this end, this lecture will analyze the sixteenth-century debate around the completion of the facade of the Basilica of San Petronio in Bologna, partially built in the(...)
Paul Desmarais Theatre Keyword(s):
Guido Beltramini, church of San Petronio, Bologna, Andrea Palladio, Baldassare Peruzzi, Giacomo da Vignola
Devices of Design
A collaboration between the CCA and the Daniel Langlois Foundation for Art, Science, and Technology, Devices of Design was initiated in response to the increasingly widespread use of digital media and software technologies in architectural design and construction. A colloquium and a subsequent roundtable discussion address both the consequences that this shift implies for(...)
Paul-Desmarais Theatre
18 November 2004 to 19 November 2004
Devices of Design
Actions:
Description:
A collaboration between the CCA and the Daniel Langlois Foundation for Art, Science, and Technology, Devices of Design was initiated in response to the increasingly widespread use of digital media and software technologies in architectural design and construction. A colloquium and a subsequent roundtable discussion address both the consequences that this shift implies for(...)
Paul-Desmarais Theatre
In 1929, Ilse Bing bought a Leica camera and started a photographic career that took her from Frankfurt to New York via Paris. While still in Frankfurt, she was commissioned by architect and urban planner Mart Stam to undertake a photographic survey of the modern buildings that were being erected in the city, including the Henry and Emma Budge-Heim H-block building. Built(...)
Hall cases
5 September 2013 to 5 December 2013
H-BLOCK: Social Housing – Ilse Bing
Actions:
Description:
In 1929, Ilse Bing bought a Leica camera and started a photographic career that took her from Frankfurt to New York via Paris. While still in Frankfurt, she was commissioned by architect and urban planner Mart Stam to undertake a photographic survey of the modern buildings that were being erected in the city, including the Henry and Emma Budge-Heim H-block building. Built(...)
Hall cases
Shaughnessy House, CCA Keyword(s):
Indigenous-led design, place-based practices, place-based knowledges, pedagogy, environment, climate crisis, on-the-land learning
24 February 2024, 2pm to 3:30pm
Shaughnessy House, CCA Keyword(s):
Indigenous-led design, place-based practices, place-based knowledges, pedagogy, environment, climate crisis, on-the-land learning
Learning from... Ordos
The coal- and gas-rich city of Ordos in northern China boasts a new central district devoid of people. The contemporary city centre was built from scratch on the arid Mongolian steppe at a cost of over $161 billion, and was projected to house over 1 million people. Currently, the government claims that 28,000 reside in the new area. Despite the lack of residents, property(...)
Paul-Desmarais Theatre
8 November 2012 , 7pm
Learning from... Ordos
Actions:
Description:
The coal- and gas-rich city of Ordos in northern China boasts a new central district devoid of people. The contemporary city centre was built from scratch on the arid Mongolian steppe at a cost of over $161 billion, and was projected to house over 1 million people. Currently, the government claims that 28,000 reside in the new area. Despite the lack of residents, property(...)
Paul-Desmarais Theatre
Major international architects Rem Koolhaas and Peter Eisenman address topics they consider to be of vital importance and urgency in contemporary architectural practice. Their individual presentations are followed by a joint conversation with CCA Founding Director and Chair of the Board of Trustees Phyllis Lambert. The Urgency series reflects the CCA’s ongoing exploration(...)
8 June 2007
Urgency 2007: Rem Koolhaas and Peter Eisenman
Actions:
Description:
Major international architects Rem Koolhaas and Peter Eisenman address topics they consider to be of vital importance and urgency in contemporary architectural practice. Their individual presentations are followed by a joint conversation with CCA Founding Director and Chair of the Board of Trustees Phyllis Lambert. The Urgency series reflects the CCA’s ongoing exploration(...)
Old Books New Cities
The pressing need to reconstruct cities after the Second World War and the sudden post-war rise in population led the public sector to assume an ever-increasing role in the design and construction of the urban environment. In different political contexts, large urban developments or the construction of entirely new towns were directed by municipal or state powers and(...)
Hall cases
12 December 2013 to 15 June 2014
Old Books New Cities
Actions:
Description:
The pressing need to reconstruct cities after the Second World War and the sudden post-war rise in population led the public sector to assume an ever-increasing role in the design and construction of the urban environment. In different political contexts, large urban developments or the construction of entirely new towns were directed by municipal or state powers and(...)
Hall cases
Johannes Kuehn and Simona Malvezzi present a lecture on Kuehn Malvezzis recent work, including their winning proposal for the Insectarium in Montreal. Presented as part of Displaying Architecture, a CCA series that looks at the relationship between architecture and spaces of display.
8 October 2015 , 6pm
Displaying Architecture: Kuehn Malvezzi
Actions:
Description:
Johannes Kuehn and Simona Malvezzi present a lecture on Kuehn Malvezzis recent work, including their winning proposal for the Insectarium in Montreal. Presented as part of Displaying Architecture, a CCA series that looks at the relationship between architecture and spaces of display.