Roger-Henri Expert (18 April 1882 – 13 April 1955) was a French

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Life

The son of a

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

, Expert first studied painting at the École des beaux-arts in Bordeaux, then from 1906 attended the

École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in nor ...

in Paris, where he studied under Gaston Redon and Gustave Umbdenstock. In 1912 he won the second

Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

and spent three years in Rome at the Villa Medici. He returned to the Ecole as an instructor, in 1922, then as the head of his atelier in 1934, until 1953. In 1921 he accepted a position as ''Architecte des Bâtiments civils et palais nationaux'' (official architect of national structures), responsible for the maintenance of the

Louvre Palace The Louvre Palace (, ), often referred to simply as the Louvre, is an iconic French palace located on the Right Bank of the Seine in Paris, occupying a vast expanse of land between the Tuileries Gardens and the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxe ...

, Gobelins Manufactory, the

Panthéon The Panthéon (, ), is a monument in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, France. It stands in the Latin Quarter, Paris, Latin Quarter (Quartier latin), atop the , in the centre of the , which was named after it. The edifice was built between 1758 ...

, as well as new projects for embassies, fair pavilions and other government commissions through the 1950s. Stylistically Expert worked in a simplified classicism tending towards Art Deco—his Tourism Pavilion for the 1925 International Exhibition of Hydropower and Tourism in

Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

is an early and uncharacteristic showy example. He also developed an expertise in architectural lighting. (His dramatic floodlighting for the 1937 Paris Exposition, seen by

Albert Speer Berthold Konrad Hermann Albert Speer (; ; 19 March 1905 – 1 September 1981) was a German architect who served as Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production, Minister of Armaments and War Production in Nazi Germany during most of W ...

, preceded Speer's "cathedral of light" at the Festliches Nürnberg by a few months.) Expert was made Commander of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

in 1950, and appointed to the

Académie des Beaux-Arts The (; ) is a French learned society based in Paris. It is one of the five academies of the . The current president of the academy (2021) is Alain-Charles Perrot, a French architect. Background The academy was created in 1816 in Paris as a me ...

in 1954. He died the following year, and is buried at the cemetery at

Arcachon Arcachon (; ) is a commune in the southwestern French department of Gironde. It is a popular seaside resort on the Atlantic coast southwest of Bordeaux, in the Landes forest. It has a sandy beach and a mild climate said to be favourable for p ...

Work

* reconstruction of the Hôtel-de-ville,

Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...

, with sculptor Carlo Sarrabezolles, 1924–1927 * Hotel Splendid and the casino,

Dax, Landes Dax (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France, Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Landes (department), Landes Departments of France, department. It is known as a spa destination, specialising ...

, 1925–1932 * Tourism Pavilion, '' exposition internationale de la houille blanche et du tourisme'',

, 1925 * the Rue d'Ulm buildings of the

École nationale supérieure des arts décoratifs The École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs (; ÉnsAD) also known as Arts Decos' and École des Arts décoratifs, is a public grande école of art and design, constituent member of PSL Research University. The school is located in the R ...

, Paris, 1927–1928 * French Embassy, Belgrade, Serbia, with sculptor Carlo Sarrabezolles, 1928–1933 * two pavilions and the illuminated lights for the

Paris Colonial Exposition The Paris Colonial Exhibition (or "''Exposition coloniale internationale''", International Colonial Exhibition) was a six-month colonial exhibition held in Paris, France, in 1931 that attempted to display the diverse cultures and immense resour ...

, with fellow architect André Granet, 1931 * decorative scheme for the

SS Normandie SS ''Normandie'' was a French ocean liner built in Saint-Nazaire, France, for the French Line ''Compagnie Générale Transatlantique'' (CGT). She entered service in 1935 as the largest and fastest passenger ship afloat, transatlantic crossing, ...

, circa 1932"Art Deco Relics of the Normandie" by Wendy Moonan
from the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. * The 10 Rue Küss School, reinforced concrete in the shape of a ship, 13th arrondissement, Paris, 1932–1934 * fountains and pools of the

Jardins du Trocadéro The Jardins du Trocadéro (; Gardens of the Trocadéro) is a public space in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is bounded to the northwest by the wings of the Palais de Chaillot and to the southeast by the Seine and the Pont d'I� ...

, for the

Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne (1937) The ''Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne'' (International Exposition of Art and Technology in Modern Life) was held from 25 May to 25 November 1937 in Paris, France. Both the Palais de Chaillot, housing the Mu ...

, Paris * French pavilion for the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair) was an world's fair, international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, New York, United States. The fair included exhibitio ...

, with architect Pierre Patout, 1939 * interior of the French Embassy, London, 1946–1948 * residential building towers within the Old Port of

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

, 1946–1952 * the

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete or ferro-concrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ...

Sainte-Thérèse-de-l'Enfant-Jésus church,

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

, begun 1937, completed 1954

References

Sources

Brief biography of Expert
@ Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine * this page translated from its French equivalent accessed 9/13/2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Expert, Roger-Henri 1882 births 1955 deaths 20th-century French architects Prix de Rome for architecture École des Beaux-Arts alumni Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Commanders of the Legion of Honour