Miroirs (Les)

Miroirs

Year of construction: 1981
Architect: Henri La Fonta
Surface area: 57,500 sq.m
Height: 69m. 16 floors

Address: 18, Avenue d'Alsace - 92400 Courbevoie
Nearest car park: Saisons
Nearest metro station: Esplanade de La Défense

The first third-generation office building, Les Miroirs is also the first of the operations led by Henri La Fonta at La Défense. The architect, who will be one of the most present in the district, wanted this building to "change taste" but also to show the technical progress made in the implementation of reinforced concrete artwork.
In a total break with a large part of the buildings of the time (year 1980), Les Miroirs is articulated in eight buildings, grouped around a square. The square contains a basin where cylinders decorated by Deverne emerge.
A veritable fortified castle with 16 floors and a facade of reflective glass and black South African granite, the building houses Saint-Gobain's head office.

A word about the architect

Before becoming an architect, Henri La Fonta first tried his hand at sculpture and painting. However, his training at the Camondo School led him to architecture. He gained his first experience in 1951 in Morocco as a collaborator and then returned to Paris in the 1960s. There, he worked for several design offices.
In 1977, he founded his own agency. This agency quickly established itself thanks to the creativity and conceptual rigour he demonstrated in his work. At La Défense, Henri La Fonta is, from the 1980s, the main instigator of the renewal of office buildings. The business district owes him Les Miroirs as well as the Pascal and Voltaire Towers.

Miroirs

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