In Paris, Tadao Ando Has Transformed The Neo-Classical Bourse De Commerce Into A Concrete Masterwork

The neo-classical building has reopened after a three-year restoration, which involved constructing a nine-meter-tall cylindrical concrete wall at the center of its rotunda, to house some 5000 artworks and to enhance the historical building’s charming period features. The architectural heritage of the building was left intact, with the new concrete volume inserted within the walls of the glass-domed rotunda. On the inside of the roof, a 19th-century mural spans the entire length, which viewers can see from within the new concrete space. It connects to the floors above and below by geometric concrete staircases that encase its circular form. The commercial space houses the contemporary art collection of French billionaire François Pinault, in a harmonious display of differing architectural eras. French designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec created the Bourse’s furniture, which includes outdoor street furniture surrounding the building’s exterior.