ARTE Distribution

Dive into an iconic work of the Spanish architect Gaudí, Casa Batlló. This fantastic and magical building is less known than the Sagrada Família, but much more iconic since he managed to invite nature into the city...

Nowadays, the city of Barcelona cannot be dissociated from Gaudí, an artist who has always been inspired by Mediterranean culture – which shows in all his work. The Casa Batlló and its plant world in the heart of the city – design, color, shape, space and light – is the ideal combination of art and functionality, of architecture and design; it is a key building for understanding Catalan modernism... and for understanding the Gaudí myth!

Founding museums is a pastime among high-stakes collectors. Follow a magnificent Paris Museum restoration, where French Billionaire Francois Pinault showcases its art collection.

After five years of extraordinary renovation and construction work by Tadao Ando – one of today's greatest architects – François Pinault is preparing “Ouverture”, the museum's inaugural exhibition. This was an artistic and personal challenge for Pinault, a passionate collector and businessman at the height of his power, a billionaire and a non-conformist, as he defines himself.

Who was Raymond Loewy? A designer with the golden touch - such a genius that he could cross the US by air, rail, or road, stylishly seated in a plane, train, or automobile he'd designed himself!

French designer Raymond Loewy was a star when the American Way of Life was at its flamboyant capitalist peak. He styled his own destiny as a Hollywood thriller. After all, he was a tycoon, a New York celebrity. Yet by the end of his life, he’d been forgotten. He took the mystery of his iconic Coca-Cola bottle to the grave with him. The bigger they are, the harder they fall: One day, megalomania got the better of Loewy, and he came to a tragic end. Suspense, drama, twists of fate: Loewy invented the medium as the message.

The Mediterranean is home to the world’s highest number of UNESCO World Heritage sites. Its stunning wealth means that veritable gems get left in the shade – the forgotten treasures of the Mediterranean.

Each film is like a fantastic story that takes viewers on a tremendous journey to discover a forgotten treasure, country, history, know-how of men and women.

Placing the art of design in its sociological and technological context, the DESIGN collection tells the story of the 20th century through the industrial objects that have made their mark on it. The objects reflect their time, while at the same time anticipating the future.

Just like a piece of art, an industrial object is a mirror of its era, though in a more direct and explicit manner than a painting or a sculpture. The industrial object obeys two fundamental criteria: It needs to be functional, perform its task in daily life - and after all must be sold. Therefore, it has to be technically innovative and esthetically pleasant.

The series, rather than explaining last century's objects, uses them to zoom on different periods. Which invites the audience not so much on a tour through museums, but on a journey in time. Archive images illustrate the political, social and cultural situation of a defined chapter from our past, via film extracts, cultural presentations, popular music etc. The history of the object itself, its conception, creators, fabrication and a contemporary frame story join in to build a bridge between the past and the present.

2004 : International Festival of Art Film, Montreal - Best "essai" of the Emile-Nelligan Foundation for the AKARI LAMPS.

Discover the hidden artistic treasures behind the construction of iconic monuments. How they fit into art history and have been preserved until today. With: the Castle of Fontainebleau, the Chauvet cave, Wagner’s Opera in Bayreuth... and many others.

In each episode, you discover little known aspects of the greatest European monuments and the secrets behind their outstanding architecture.
Visit places that are inaccessible and parts of the building that are restricted to the public.
Architects, archeologists, artists, landscapers, curators or art restorers will guide your visit. Their insight will help you learn the intricacies of each site and the links they hold to art history.

The northern part of the Vosges is one of the most important crystal manufacturing regions in Europe, with three world-renowned crystal factories: The Compagnie des Cristalleries de Saint Louis, Lalique and the Meisenthal International Glass Art Center. With Christmas approaching, the glassworks in Moselle are in full swing.

Balthus, Fragonard or Berlioz stayed there. Up until now, little has been said about the Villa Medici, but the veil is lifting. The Villa, which houses the French Academy in Rome founded 350 years ago, reveals its history alongside that of its residents.

Our guides are art historians, restorers, current and former residents, and directors and curators. The documentary takes a unique plunge into the intimate history of the place that is admired by many and criticized by some, but considered universally to be a “Dolce Villa”. 

For the Eiffel Tower's 130th birthday, this film recounts the incredible epic of its construction. It was erected in record time at the end of the 19th century – it was the largest and craziest building ever built at the time.

Delve into the Eiffel Tower's breathtaking history, from its construction to the present day – thanks to spectacular images and an original 3D vision that retraces the main stages of its construction step by step.
Pascal Ory has dedicated his life to the Eiffel Tower. This historian has spent several decades understanding and deciphering the construction of the iconic tower. Two years ago he embarked on an incredible project: with one of the greatest specialists in 3D animation, he has been recreating the erection of the Iron Lady in moving images – step by step. The history of its construction has been anything but an easy task. Gustave Eiffel, its brilliant inventor, had numerous and powerful opponents. But against the odds, the first foundation holes were dug in 1887. In just two years, what was certainly one of humankind's most beautiful creations had been completed. Its inauguration took place during the 1889 Universal Exhibition.
Gustave Eiffel then fought tooth and nail to save it, because it was to be destroyed after twenty years! Discover the amazing tale behind the emblematic monument. We will also discover the Eiffel Tower of today – the French symbol that attracts nearly 10 million visitors each year.
We will witness its stripping to find the Tower's original color pigment – it has been repainted every seven years since its construction, in accordance with Gustave Eiffel's wishes.
 
And enjoy a grandiose privilege: we will be behind the scenes alongside the lovers of the Tower for the preparation of a fabulous show for its 130th anniversary. This 52-minute film is a great opportunity to admire the beautiful Iron Lady in a way you have never seen it before.

This documentary sets out to show how, at the start of the 21st century, unbaked earth is fast becoming the building material of the future in both rich and poor countries.

Nearly 2 billion people live in unbaked earth dwellings. People in all parts of the world have been building with unbaked earth for thousands of years, and it was used in the construction of the earliest known cities. It can be shaped into any architectural form. Left to dry in the sun, it becomes as hard as concrete. For practically no cost, it can be extracted from the building plot itself. There is no need to fire it or transport it. It is 100% natural and environment-friendly. It is an extremely efficient insulator, keeping interiors cool in summer and warm in winter. It is still, as it has always been, the single most readily available, accessible and economical building material.
The fact that unbaked earth is so readily available and easy to use makes it the ideal building material for the poorest countries (an estimated 1.1 billion people are inadequately housed, worldwide). But in fact, these qualities are as valuable to rich countries as to poor. They offer an answer to uncertainties about the planet's future energy supply and damage to the environment. In many situations, this natural material can be used to replace modern materials and its aesthetic and constructional qualities are impressive. All over the world, unbaked earth is becoming increasing popular.
Filmed in Egypt, Syria, Peru, Burma, Mali (in Djenné, a UNESCO World Heritage site) and on the island of Mayotte (in the Indian Ocean), this documentary sets out to show how, at the start of the 21st century, unbaked earth is fast becoming the building material of the future in both rich and poor countries.

This documentary recounts the architectural and cultural adventure of the construction of the Louvre Abu Dhabi museum. We take a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of the universal museum, initiated by architect Jean Nouvel.

Viewers will discover how this architectural concept, which plays on the relationship between interior and exterior, in ever-changing light, provides a link between tradition and modernity, and lays down a bridge between cultures. At the crossroads of the West and the Middle East, this film also reveals the educational and cultural challenges of the making of the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
 

This independent and non-conformist architect owes his renown to the scope of his work. From the Centre Pompidou to the Centre Jean-Marie Tjibaou in Noumea, inaugurated last year, the De Mesnil museum in Houston or Kansa airport in Japan, Renzo Piano edifices are to be found throughout the world.

By offering the televiewer the opportunity to follow three projects at different stages of progress, (running projects like the liturgical centre of Padre Pio in the Puglia region and the Nola cultural & commercial center in Italy, the first discussions about the Paul Klee Museum in Bern, the opening of the Potsdam Square in Berlin?) the director brings us to the very heart of the approach of the architect.
From one architect design workshop to another and from one worksite to another, the viewer sees how Renzo Piano stays true to the artisan approach underlying his initial creations and has striven to find an answer to the specific problems of these projects, in the light of the history and geography of the sites in which they are to be erected, their function and the financial context.
A portrait of Renzo Piano brought together with the complicity of his closest collaborators: architects, engineers, maquette-makers ... A "real-life" portrait of an architect who sees his profession as a living thing, evolving with time and practice.