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/// DESIGN STORIES / Interview with Rudy Ricciotti

The Master

of

CONCRETE

RUDY RICCIOTTI
RUDY RICCIOTTI AGENCY
PARIS (FRANCE)

THE FRENCH ARCHITECT FROM BANDOL HAS AN INNATE
SENSE OF FORM AND ESTHETICS; HE IS A PAST MASTER
OF SCULPTED CONCRETE, BRINGING CEMENT TO
LIFE WITH CURVES AND LATTICE WORK. THE MUCEM
IN MARSEILLE, THE COCTEAU MUSEUM IN MENTON,
THE ISLAMIC ARTS SECTION OF THE LOUVRE, THE
PAVILLON NOIR PERFORMING ARTS THEATRE IN AIX-EN-
PROVENCE... EACH OF HIS GRACEFUL, EMBLEMATIC
CREATIONS IS AN ODE TO BEAUTY. HERE WE BRING YOU
A FRANK INTERVIEW ON THE LAUNCH OF HIS LATEST
BOOK: L’EXIL DE LA BEAUTÉ, (THE EXILE OF BEAUTY)
26 PUBLISHED BY ÉDITIONS TEXTUEL*.

So, Rudy Ricciotti, concrete is your speciality and you manage The construction of any major city has to take into account
to make it bold and beautiful while others see it as something pedestrians. What is an architect’s role in relation to the
rather cold. Would it be true to say that “Concrete and Old quality of life of a neighbourhood?
Lace” could be your trademark? R.R.: The architect is responsible for creating something that
R.R.: Well I don’t go in much for word play when it comes to is beautiful and durable as well as bringing dignity to a space.
architecture: what I try to do is construct whole sentences, trying Talking about pedestrianisation in the same breath as the visual
to avoid mistakes. Telling a story often requires a feminine touch. aspect seems ridiculous. Visual beauty opens up a greater sen-
Over time, and with the application of a certain amount of science, sual awareness.
my work has become more feminine, more graceful. Femininity New types of behaviour and changing needs are driving the
has, at its core, a well-constructed narrative, like a scientific ways in which towns and public spaces are used. Have you
experiment taken to extreme lengths. noticed a trend towards beautifying the mundane and the
Does architecture today concern itself with creating a new utilitarian in public spaces?
sense of transience, giving the viewer the idea of a fleeting R.R.: It needs to be more than just a trend, it’s an urgent neces-
breach in time and space? sity. This pathological deterioration is spreading like a virus... I
R.R.: A narrative demands continuity rather than a breach. have not seen much improvement. Our public spaces are being
It is fundamentally important to establish a narrative in ruined by advertising and logos, by consumerism. And pessi-
order to make a stand against the way in which beauty is mism is taking hold in spite of the talent we have among French
being ostracised. architects.
Your projects often target diverse audiences: stadia, Is this refusal to cast beauty aside your new battleground?
museums, universities, and now Lillenium, a combination of R.R.: Making beauty a conscious choice in this day and age
a shopping center and gallery. What are the challenges that requires commitment and resilience. I am fighting against the
these projects have in common? collapse of esthetics. I may not be capable of defining beauty,
R.R.: What they have in common is a reliance on crafts and but I can define ugliness. Fighting against the disfigurement of
trades which allows us to promote French craftsmanship and our cities and our landscapes is quite patriotic, don’t you think?
the local economy. Your projects often use DELABIE products, Were you aware
of that?
R.R.: Ah yes, the urinals! They remind me that Marcel Duchamp
*L'exil de la beauté, éditions Textuel, 2019
Photo credit: © René Habermacher was French! So as a proud patriot, that suits me just fine!