Ré]inventer l'existant 2025" competition
Victoria Roussel
Congratulations to Eve Bergeron, Emma Coppens and Lilia Hocine, students at ENSA Paris-la Villette, winners and finalists in the third edition of the competition [Ré]inventer l’existant 2025: les architectes de demain imaginent notre avenir post-carbone, organized by DRAC and DRIEAT Île-de-France!
The “Le Ventre de la Baleine” project, under the direction of Guillaume Baron and Mesnil Sineus, won the “Architect Mediator” special mention.
On October 8, 2025, at Les Récollets in Paris, the winners of the 3rd edition of the competition were announced. Of the 27 projects submitted, 10 were selected by the jury for their quality and the diversity of the typologies studied, but only 4 teams ended up as winners. Composed of students and teachers from architecture schools in the Paris region, these teams were recognized for their projects to transform existing buildings, reconciling sustainability, innovation and heritage preservation.
The “Belly of the Whale” project
“Le Ventre de la Baleine”, an artistic wasteland in Pantin that has been home to over 300 artists since 1989, has escaped demolition thanks to a co-construction process involving local residents. The aim of the project is to rehabilitate the building, improve its energy performance and finance the work through the construction of new housing. A proposal that combines creativity, industrial heritage and social housing, demonstrating that an alternative to destruction is possible.
Exhibition for the Journées nationales de l’architecture
An exhibition of the competition’s 10 outstanding projects is open to the public until November 7 at the Couvent des Récollets, Maison de l’Architecture IDF.
News
Christian Barani meets L1 students to discuss the film "Penser l'incertitude" ("Thinking about uncertainty")
As part of the inaugural week, an afternoon was dedicated to discovering different cultural practices (shows, films, scenography workshops, etc.).
Around sixty first-year students attended the screening of the documentary “Penser l’incertitude”, which portrays a new generation of architects and landscape architects, winners of the AJAP 2023 awards. Travelling through landscapes, traversing worksites and visiting buildings, these young professionals bear witness to their work, the meaning of a delicate commitment and an attention to caring for territories and the people who live in them.
The screening was followed by a discussion with filmmaker Christian Barani and Hervé Bougon, co-founder and general manager of the Close-Up festival, whose 5th edition will be held from November 17 to 25, 2025.
"Ça dépend" by Jeremy Till, Éditions de la Villette
Finally available in French, this classic of contemporary architectural theory opens a definitive breach in architects’ belief in the autonomy of their discipline.
Bookstore release: "La Critique à l'œuvre", Éditions de la Villette
A lively, scholarly analysis of key episodes in the recent history of architectural criticism. With contributions by Georges Adamczyk, Paolo Amaldi, Jean-Pierre Chupin, Carmella Cucuzzella, Bechara Helal, Rainier Hoddé, Hélène Jannière, Jonathan Lachance, Réjean Legault, David Theodore and Estelle Thibault.
Bookstore release: "La Critique à l'œuvre", Éditions de la Villette
A lively, scholarly analysis of key episodes in the recent history of architectural criticism. With contributions by Georges Adamczyk, Paolo Amaldi, Jean-Pierre Chupin, Carmella Cucuzzella, Bechara Helal, Rainier Hoddé, Hélène Jannière, Jonathan Lachance, Réjean Legault, David Theodore and Estelle Thibault.