A Return to Firminy: Kristian Hyde in RIBA Journal
We are pleased to share that Kristian Hyde has been published in RIBA Journal with his essay “Postcard from Firminy, France.” Read the full article here.
This piece is part of the personal revealing of a journey. It revisits Le Corbusier’s Saint Pierre church in Firminy just south of Lyon, France. His final major commission completed in 2006 by his protégé José Oubrerie, decades after Le Corbusier’s death. The church forms part of the Firminy Vert site, where several Le Corbusier buildings, including the Maison de la Culture, are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list “The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier, an Outstanding Contribution to the Modern Movement.”
For us along with out team, the return to Firminy is significant. It underlines the values that shape our practice: that architecture is not only about form but about meaning, and legacy.
The questions raised there about care, authorship and what remains after the author has gone are the same questions we ask when designing homes that carry forward stories for generations.
Architecture is not static. It is an unfolding dialogue between place, memory and future and those who inhabit it. Firminy reminds us of that truth, and it reinforces how the timeless lessons of architectural history are woven into the zero energy homes we create today.
If you are considering your own project, we would be delighted to explore how a home can become more than shelter, carrying your meaning and memory, and enriched by our collective experience.
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