Labrouste, Henri (1801–1875)

Sponsor Link:

Henri Labrouste emerged from the tradition of the beaux-arts and heralded an era of modernism with the use of functional building materials. Born in Paris, he followed his brother Théodore with architectural education at the École des Beaux-Arts. Henri joined the atelier of Vaudoyer and Lebas in 1819 and advanced to the first class within a year. He won the Grand Prix de Rome in 1824 and studied three Greek temples at Paestum. Returning to Paris, his controversial project disturbed the faculty at the Ecole, who were committed to a sculptural ‘universal vocabulary’ of the orders (Middleton, 1982). With its unorthodox conclusions, Labrouste’s project examined the construction of these temples, revealing that, in addition to stone construction, stucco and wood articulation and polychromatic decoration were used (Middleton, 1982).

Over the subsequent years, Labrouste directed an atelier and in 1842 began the design of the Bibliothèque Ste-Geneviève. The library, with minimal decoration, can be read as the binding of a book with the names of authors prominently displayed on the exterior. The long, thin, barrel-vaulted building was constructed of masonry with exposed iron columns on the interior. Using a rational approach, Labrouste combined his traditional training with structurally efficient, contemporary building materials. In 1854 he was appointed architect of the Bibliothèque Nationale. The first part of the project required expanding the Palais Mazarin and Hôtel Chevry-Tubeuf. Again Labrouste employed an iron framework, using glass floors between the stacks and roofing the building with
nine domes set on slender iron columns.

Although appearing rendered, this drawing suggests an example of a beaux-arts esquisse. It consists of the typical preliminary orthographic drawings of plan, section, and elevation for the Bibliothèque Ste-Geneviève, Paris, 1939. As a stage beyond the initial search for organization, the content and format are consistent with a competition that would solidify a decision about direction (parti). There are several indications on the page that point to this assessment. At the bottom of the sheet are several short ink lines showing how Labrouste tested his pen. This checked if the ink was flowing (not dried at the nib) and to avoid the ink blob that often collected at the end during the
time the pen was not in use.

On the elevation are a series of calculations indicating he was using the image to consider dimensions. An arched opening, sketched in graphite, has been added to the low connector between the two buildings. Freehand corrections show on the stair in plan and the lower level on the cross-section. These changes suggest the illustration represented the initial esquisse that was further developed after a process of evaluation. It would be possible to speculate that Labrouste was referring to this page while developing the design (the final rendu). Being the less valuable drawing (a sketch), it served its purpose as a parti, he could make corrections and used it as a blotter for his pen.

Understanding the abbreviated schedule for competitions at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, the techniques of this sketch comparatively reveal the quickness inherent in a search for form (Harbeson, 1927). Quickness as expounded by Italo Calvino, involves a certain speed, economy, and wit (1988). The concept of the parti epitomized economy, displaying the whole organization as efficiently as possible. Time allotted to the search for form was extremely short – the parti was required to reveal a complete perception of the space, conveying its rationale. The academics at the Ecole may have referred to this intelligence as character, but the logic and perception may be of distinction in this case.

Incoming search terms:

henri labrouste,bibliotheque national labrouste,laBROUSTE,labrouste bibliotheque nationale,bibliotheque sainte genevieve by henri labrouste,