Jean Dubuisson (18 September 1914 – 22 October 2011) 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 ...
who is regarded as one of the leading practitioners of the French post-World War II years.
Biography
Jean René Julien Dubuisson was born in
Lille
Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. He was the son of the architect Émile Dubuisson (1873–1947).
He began his architecture studies in the École des Beaux Arts in Lille, before continuing at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris. He received his diploma in 1939, in the studio of Emmanuel Pontremoli. He was Second Grand Prix de Rome in 1943 and First Grand
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 ...
in 1945, following which he lived in Rome, in the Villa Medici, and in Athens from 1946 to 1949. Upon returning to France, he joined in the rebuilding of France after the massive destruction during World War II.
His submission in the Strasbourg competition of 1951, won by Eugène Beaudouin, secured him a place as one of the limited number of architects commissioned by the national government to build housing projects.
Beyond a classical culture gained at the École des Beaux Arts and on his travels in Italy and Greece, Dubuisson was strongly influenced by
Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...
,
Arne Jacobsen
Arne Emil Jacobsen, Honorary Fellowship of the American Institute of Architects, Hon. FAIA (; 11 February 1902 – 24 March 1971) was a Danish architect and furniture designer. He is remembered for his contribution to functionalism (architec ...
, and
Walter Gropius
Walter Adolph Georg Gropius (; 18 May 1883 – 5 July 1969) was a German-born American architect and founder of the Bauhaus, Bauhaus School, who is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modernist architecture. He was a founder of ...
. His numerous projects are characterized by the search for a personal language to resolve the drastic constraints of the immense programs of the time. He alone designed approximately 20,000 units of social housing.
Dubuisson is remembered as one of the major figures of the post-World War II period in France, especially as related to housing: the Shape Village in
Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. ...
(1951–1952), La Caravelle in Villeneuve-la-Garenne (1959–1967) and the apartment blocks of Maine-Montparnasse in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
(1959–1964). He is also known for the National Museum of Folk Arts and Traditions in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
He won the Grand Prix National de l'Architecture in 1996.
His son is designer Sylvain Dubuisson (born in 1946).
Selected buildings
* 1948: Botanical Garden in
Lille
Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
* 1951: SHAPE Village in
Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. ...
(
Yvelines
Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Croix (Nord)
* 1953: Housing project in the railway station neighborhood and rue de la Marne in
Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô (, ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy.Roubaix
Roubaix ( , ; ; ; ) is a city in northern France, located in the Lille metropolitan area on the Belgian border. It is a historically mono-industrial Communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, depar ...
* 1955-1964: Housing project in les Basses-Terres in Pierrefitte- Stains (
Seine-Saint-Denis
() is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as ' or ' ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93. Its prefecture is Bobi ...
)
* 1957-1973: Crédit Lyonnais Tower, in
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 ...
,
Puteaux
Puteaux () is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located in the heart of the Hauts-de-Seine department, from the centre of Paris.
La Défense, Paris's business district hosting the tallest buildings in the metropolitan ...
(demolished)
* 1958-1966: Mouchotte building in rue du Commandant-René-Mouchotte in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
* 1959-1967: Housing project in La Caravelle in Villeneuve-la-Garenne
* 1961-1964: Cormontaigne residence in
Thionville
Thionville (; ; ) is a city in the northeastern French Departments of France, department of Moselle (department), Moselle. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle (river), Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz.
History
Thionvi ...
* 1961-1967: Parc Saint-Maur residence in rue Réaumur in
Lille
Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
(726 units)
* 1962 : Building at 63 avenue de la Bourdonnais in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
with Michel Jausserand et Olivier Vaudou
* 1962-1980: "Les Hauts de
Chambéry
Chambéry (, , ; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Savoie Departments of France, department in the southeastern ...
" urban development
* 1964-1973: Borny urban development in
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 ...
* 1964: Saint-Louis Church in
Belfort
Belfort (; archaic , ) is a city in northeastern France, situated approximately from the Swiss border. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Territoire de Belfort.
Belfort is from Paris and from Basel. The residents of the city ...
* 1964-1967: "Les Érables" housing in la Duchère,
Lyon
Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
Yvelines
Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Pontpoint,
Oise
Oise ( ; ; ) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 in 2019.< ...
Bois de Boulogne
The Bois de Boulogne (, "Boulogne woodland") is a large public park that is the western half of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, near the suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt and Neuilly-sur-Seine. The land was ceded to the city of Paris by the Em ...
,
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
* 1969: Exhibition pavilion at the Parc des Expositions de Lac,
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
in collaboration with Francisque Perrier
* 1969: Athéna Port Residence, 1390 boulevard des Graviers,
Bandol
Bandol (; ) is a commune in Var department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, southeastern France. Bandol and the seat of its eponymous commune, was founded in 1595 and built around a small military fort.
The region, located near the coast ...
, Var
* 1969-1971: Advisory architect for the building of the Saint-Laurent nuclear plant in Saint-Laurent-Nouan,
Loir-et-Cher
Loir-et-Cher (, ) is a Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region of France. It is named after two rivers which run through it, the Loir in its northern part and the Cher (river), Cher in its southern p ...
, in collaboration with Jean de Mailly.
* 1972: Porte-Verte housing project, 13 avenue du Général-Pershing, in
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...