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Jean Prouvé
Shed Roof, 1952/1956

Installation view: Galerie Downtown@DesignMiami 2011
Archives Steph Simon – Galerie Downtown-François Laffanour, Paris

Installation view: Galerie Downtown@DesignMiami 2011, Archives Steph Simon – Galerie Downtown-François Laffanour, Paris

Jean Prouvé

Collection

Curved shed roof made of aluminum and bent sheet steel

In the mid 1940s Jean Prouvé began to focus on roof constructions for industrial and factory buildings. His aim was to avoid metal-wood constructions, as well as brick and cement, and to separate the bearing structure from the cladding, which enabled it to span large spaces. His solution was the construction of the Shed Roof which he designed in a number of variations. With this new construction method it was possible to reduce the uprights to a minimum, to improve the water-tightness and to optimize the use of day light. The completion and mounting of the roof element was greatly simplified because it consisted of only a few parts: two supporting beams of stamped steel, connected by metal cross beams, and covered with an aluminum sheet on both the outside and the inside, and a frame of stamped steel into which glass can be fitted. The width of the roof element varies from 3 to 8 meters. Because of its success this mode of construction was used for various industrial buildings in the 1950s. The first known project where the "shed roof" was used was the rebuilding of the printing house Mame in Tours (France) in 1950, where 672 roof elements were connected to each other. The lightness, the luminosity and the quick assembly of the single pieces delivered to the location was praised by critics at the time. Further orders followed such as the Lycée Blaise Pascal in Orsay in 1956. Jean Prouvé also adapted the "shed roof" for domestic architecture, and used it for his "Coques" or "Shell House". It was partially or entirely placed on the ground, or on a stone wall, in order to expand the space.
The Shed Roof Element from the collection Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary was produced in the factory Maxéville, in the vicinity of Nancy, which Jean Prouvé founded together with the industrialist Mr. Schvartz in 1947. In 1956 the roof element was mounted on the Lycée Blaise Pascal in Orsay. In the 1980s the school was renovated and the roof was demounted. In 2001 the roof element was exhibited within the frame of the exhibition "L'année Jean Prouvé " in Nancy.

*1901 in Paris, France I † 1984 in Nancy, France

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