Jean Prouvé, Maison Les Jours Meilleurs, 1956
Exhibition Galerie Patrick Seguin, Paris, March 15 - April 20, 2024.
“On Quai Alexandre III, Jean Prouvé has built the handsomest house I know of: the most perfect object for living in, the most sparkling thing ever constructed. And it’s all real, built, accomplished, the outcome of a lifetime of research. And it was commissioned from Prouvé by Abbé Pierre!” Le Corbusier exclaimed after visiting the prototype exhibited in Paris in February 1956.
Inaugurating the first virtual reality tour of a Jean Prouvé house, Galerie Patrick Seguin is pleased to present Jean Prouvé, Maison Les Jours Meilleurs, 1956, an immersive exhibition dedicated to the “Better Days” House.
In 1954, just as Abbé Pierre’s request for funding for emergency housing was rejected, a woman and child died of cold in Paris. The winter of ’54 was considered one of the hardest of the century. The former parliamentarian and founder of the Emmaüs movement put out a poignant plea over the radio for help for the homeless. Responding immediately to the social housing emergency, in just a few weeks Jean Prouvé had initiated and completed studies for a model combining earlier experiments with innovative application and cutting-edge materials.
Optimistically named “Better Days”, the 57m2 (610 sq ft) house was shown in Paris on Quai Alexandre III as part of the very popular Salon des Arts Ménagers. Erected in seven hours, this demountable prefabricated architecture was based on the principle of a central load-bearing core. Positioned at the centre of the building to form its primary support, the metal service core contained all the technical installations of the kitchen and bathroom.
Seventy years after Abbé Pierre’s memorable plea, Galerie Patrick Seguin is exhibiting the principal element of this industrialized house: the load-bearing service core. Equipped with a virtual reality headset, visitors are plunged into 1950s Paris to discover the interior of the pavilion erected on the banks of the Seine. A compilation of archives, photographs and documents from the period completes the experience of reliving a key moment in the history of architecture of the 20th century.
You can send us information (images, dates, press releases) concerning news about Jean Prouvé and his work by email : info@jeanprouve.com