MVRDV completes Dramatic Transformation of a 1970s City Block in Paris

Gaîté Montparnasse, the MVRDV-designed transformation of a city block just a short walk from Paris’ Tour Montparnasse, is now open. The project has rationalised the existing uses of the mixed-use block – which included a hotel, shopping centre, office space and a library – and densified the area by adding social housing and a kindergarten. In doing so, the building has become more welcoming and accessible to pedestrians, while reusing significant parts of the previous structure from the 1970s following circular economy principles. Completed in 1974, the original design of the “Îlot Vandamme” by Pierre Dufau was a landmark in […]