Maison de Verre, Pierre Chareau

by Jennie Santoro

The first time I heard about this piece of architecture it was a line on a piece of paper, just as above. It was my second year of undergraduate studies. My studio critic had it on a precedent list and I was the one to study this project. I looked through almost every book published on the Mason de Verre, reading the history, studying the drawings and photos, trying to understand the building in the context of the architect, the client, and the architecture of the time. So early in my studies, I was astounded by the details, intrigued by the unique movement of doors and furniture, and in love with the reuse of industrial materials in an innovative way. Much of Chareau’s work greatly influenced one of my first studio projects, but I didn’t realize that it wouldn’t end there.

About three years later, I was able to visit the Maison de Verre in person with the very professor who first introduced me to it giving me a tour. I could now understand where a photo I had in my memory had been taken from and be in the space that previously I could only imagine from plans. My experience at the Maison de Verre was understanding it in a new way that is only possible by seeing a building in person. I could now stand in the courtyard and understand the relationship of the house not only to the apartment above, but also to the apartments that surround it, to the street, and to Paris. I could see the quality of the light as it came through the glass block and feel the rubber floors beneath my feet. I could understand the space by putting my own images together. Although they may lack the permanence or sharability of photography, I find the mental pictures contain far more knowledge. The house also felt lived in. I could get a sense for both the people the house was designed for and how I would feel living in this place. Seeing the Maison de Verre in person was not only giving me a better knowledge about the piece of architecture, but it allowed me to attain my understanding of it.

Within the past few years I have found a love for industrial buildings, adaptive reuse, and recycled materials. Looking at the Maison de Verre again, I have a new appreciation for it. I have changed and my current studies and explorations can be enhanced by looking at the Maison de Verre in greater depth. To study a piece of architecture, leads into the need to see in to understand it in a way possible by only looking at something in person, gaining a knowledge that is more personal between a scholar and a piece of architecture, formulating new opinion, and an interest to study the architecture once again to objectify the experience.