Atelier LWD was an architecture studio led by

Guy Lagneau Guy Lagneau (1915 – 16 December 1996) was a French people, French architect, one of the founders of Atelier LWD, who was involved in many major projects in France and Africa. Early years Guy Lagneau was born in 1915. He was a pupil and admirer ...

, Jean Dimitrijevic and Michel Weill that was active from 1952 to 1985. It later took the name of "Atelier d'Etudes Architecturales" (ATEA) (Architectural Studies Workshop) with the addition of Paul Cordoliani, Henri Coulomb (1927–2006), Renzo Moro and Ivan Seifert (1926–2008). The studio originated many public buildings in France and Africa.

History

Guy Lagneau (1915–1996) and Michel Weill (1914–2001) met in the studio of Auguste Perret in the National School of Fine Arts established in 1943. They participated with Perret in the reconstruction of

Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...

from 1946, work that was later declared a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

. Laigneau was particularly influenced by

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

n architecture, especially steel. Jean Dimitrijevic (1926–2010) joined the agency in 1947 after meeting Guy Lagneau in a Fine Arts workshop he was running. He graduated in 1957 and completed his training at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

in 1959. He then became a partner of the workshop. The architects created the ATEA in association with a consulting firm, ''Société d'études techniques et d'aménagements planifiés'' (SETAP). ATEA-SETAP was involved in many planning operations in Africa, including

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...

and

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

. At the same time, they accepted numerous public commissions from museums, prefectures, and shopping centers in France. Lagneau also participated as an individual in preparation of master plans and urban development in the Paris region between 1962 and 1965, contributing to creation of new towns. On many occasions the agency worked with

Jean Prouvé Jean Prouvé (; 8 April 1901 – 23 March 1984) was a French metal worker, self-taught architect and designer. Le Corbusier designated Prouvé a constructeur, blending architecture and engineering. Prouvé's main achievement was transferring m ...

in creating innovative metal structures and with the designer

Charlotte Perriand Charlotte Perriand (; 24 October 1903 – 27 October 1999) was a French architect and designer. Her work aimed to create functional living spaces in the belief that better design helps in creating a better society. In her article "L'Art de Vivre" ...

for interior design.

Key achievements

The partners were responsible for many significant projects, including: *1952–1955: Paul Bert d'Aplemont School group in

. *1953–1954: Hotel de France (Conakry) with

and

*1955–1961: Musée des Beaux-Arts André Malraux in Le Havre (with

and

) *1957: Ore port of Boké in

. *1957: Taiba Mbaye Senegal. *1958: Prototype of the House of the Sahara for the Ideal Home Exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris with Jean Prouve and Charlotte Perriand (destroyed). *1958–1959: "Les Buffets" housing on the Avenue du Marechal Foch in

Fontenay-aux-Roses Fontenay-aux-Roses () is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. In 1880, a girls school was opened in the town. It was one of the most prestigious of Paris and even of whole France in t ...

(

Hauts-de-Seine Hauts-de-Seine (; ) is a department in the Île-de-France region of France. It covers Paris's western inner suburbs. It is bordered by Paris, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne to the east, Val-d'Oise to the north, Yvelines to the west and ...

), in collaboration with John Perrottet *1958: City of Cansado in

. *1960: Agency office building for Air France, rue Scribe in the 9th district of Paris, in collaboration with Charlotte Perriand *1961: The town of

Maspalomas Maspalomas () is a tourist resort in the south of the island of Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, stretching from Bahía Feliz in the east to Meloneras in the west, including the resort towns of San Agustín, Playa del Inglés and Campo de Golf, ...

, Gran Canaria, Spain *1963: Office building of the Union de Transports Aériens (UTA) Boulevard Malesherbes in Paris *1964–1967: Faculty of Letters of Nice *1965: Primary School Balizy in

Longjumeau Longjumeau () is a Communes of France, commune in the Essonne department, France. It is located south from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Inhabitants of Longjumeau are known as ''Longjumellois'' () in French. History Longjumeau Party Sch ...

(

Essonne Essonne () is a department in the southern part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. It is named after the river Essonne. In 2019, it had a population of 1,301,659, across 194 communes.Bamako Bamako is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2022 population of 4,227,569. It is located on the Niger River, near the rapids that divide the upper and middle Niger valleys in the southwestern part of the country. Bamak ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

(1200 students) *1965–1985: Administrative center of Evry (Essonne) (Prefecture, County Council, Courthouse). *1971–1976: Administrative offices, joint distribution centers EDF- GDF,

Val-d'Oise Val-d'Oise (, "Vale of the Oise") is a department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It was created in 1968 following the split of the Seine-et-Oise department. In 2019, Val-d'Oise had a population of 1,249,674.< ...

*1971–1987: Vacation rentals Marines Cogolin *1972–1985: ''

Les Quatre Temps Westfield Les 4 Temps is the main shopping centre in the business district of La Défense, in the western suburbs of Paris, on the territory of the commune of Puteaux in the Hauts-de-Seine. It is one of the largest shopping centres in Europe. In ...

'' shopping center at

La Défense La Défense () is a major business district in France's Paris metropolitan area, west of the city limits. It is located in Île-de-France region's Departments of France, department of Hauts-de-Seine in the Communes of France, communes of Courbe ...

near Paris. *1979–1982: Inner station of

Cergy-Pontoise Cergy-Pontoise () is a new town and an agglomeration community in France, in the Val-d'Oise and Yvelines departments, northwest of Paris on the river Oise. It owes its name to two of the communes that it covers, Cergy and Pontoise. Its population ...

(

), in association with Ivan Seifert *1981–1985: Office of the

Bank of France The Bank of France ( ) is the national central bank for France within the Eurosystem. It was the French central bank between 1800 and 1998, issuing the French franc. It does not translate its name to English, and thus calls itself ''Banque de F ...

Marne-la-Vallée Marne-la-Vallée () (English language, English: Marne Valley) is a new town located near Paris, France. Disneyland Paris, Walt Disney Studios Park, Val d'Europe, University of Marne la Vallée, Université Paris-Est Marne-la-Vallée, ESIEE Par ...

(

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers its ...

)

References

{{ACArt Architecture firms of France

History

Key achievements

Further reading

References