José Ignacio Linazasoro proposes a solution based on the construction of a sequence of differentiated spaces, in which the approach to the cathedral unfolds gradually. Platforms, subtle changes in level, bands of paving, rows of trees, benches and stone edges organize the parvis —the open access space in front of the cathedral’s main façade— and visually break down its vastness. The project adopts a restrained, almost background presence, allowing the cathedral to remain the focus of urban attention, while the new ordering of the ground guides visitors, encourages lingering, and restores a more complex reading of the site, closer to the historical density of the former urban traces.
The intervention can be understood as an operation that recomposes the relationship between monument and city. The space in front of the cathedral had been altered by successive urban transformations, road openings and episodes of destruction that changed its original scale and weakened the continuity between the urban fabric and the religious building. In response to this overly open condition, the project seeks to recover a closer and more inhabitable scale, one capable of accompanying the monumentality of the cathedral without turning the place into an abstract or merely scenographic esplanade.
Reims Cathedral Environment by José Ignacio Linazasoro. Photograph by Roland Halbe.
Stone is used in various forms as the principal material for paving, benches, edges and retaining elements, combining different pieces and textures to distinguish areas of movement, rest and approach to the monument. Slabs, setts, granite and limestone provide durability, sobriety and a tone compatible with the monumental setting. Together with lighting and urban furniture, these elements shape a serene, enduring public space that respects the historic character of Reims Cathedral.
Reims Cathedral Environment by José Ignacio Linazasoro. Photograph by Roland Halbe.
Project description by José Ignacio Linazasoro
This project has been developed in two distinct phases. The first corresponds to the 1992 Competition, an Ideas Competition, which already defined the principles that would be developed in the 2003 Competition.
This 2003 Competition included the execution of the first phase, namely, the Plaza in front of the Cathedral. The problem stems from the initial interventions following the Revolution, which aimed to isolate the Cathedral from the surrounding buildings, ostensibly to highlight its monumentality, but which produced the opposite effect due to the resulting loss of scale. This tendency intensified after the bombings of 1918, which led to the virtual disappearance of the medieval urban fabric and the consequent isolation of the cathedral.
The project aims to restore the lost scale of the building in relation to its immediate surroundings, without reconstructing the pre-existing residential area. Therefore, the intention is to transform the public space through platforms, changes in level, sculptural elements, and landscaping.
