Près de Metz, la seconde vie d’une école imaginée par Jean Prouvé

The article

In M le magazine du Monde, Marie Godfrain devotes a feature to the school in Vantoux designed by Jean Prouvé, occupied since May 2024 by Galerie Nathan Chiche. The text, published online and in the issue of 5 October 2024 (in the “L'esprit du lieu” section, under the title “À l'école de maître Prouvé”), is illustrated with photographs by Marion Berrin.

The journalist starts from the compass leg, which Prouvé transposed from furniture to architecture, then traces the genesis of the building: the competition launched in 1949 by the Ministry of National Education; a single-classroom rural school conceived for series production and assembly in two weeks; and finally the commission for two prototypes received in May 1950 by Jean and Henri Prouvé, for Bouqueval and for Vantoux.

She describes the ceiling height of 3.20 metres, the roof overhanging its curved metal portal frames, the portholes and the red compass legs that frame the blackboard. She recalls the listing as a historic monument in 2001, the closure of the school in 2014 and the call for projects launched in 2023 by the mayor, Antoine Dorr.

A recent graduate in art history and the son of a gallerist, Nathan Chicheportiche renovated the premises for 620,000 euros. He plans four exhibitions a year there, as well as school visits and concerts, has opened an art bookshop and is considering an artists' residency. After Jean-Pierre Raynaud, Mircea Cantor, winner of the 2011 Prix Marcel Duchamp, is announced from 2 November 2024 to 31 January 2025.

Read the article on the M, le magazine du Monde website ↗