UNESCO restores landmark headquarters complex in Paris

Officials have unveiled the landmark Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which have just been restored in a €100 million project that aims to slash the complex’s energy consumption, improve security and introduce more modern technology.

At a ceremony yesterday UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura and other officials inaugurated the renovated building on Place de Fontenoy with the help of French architect Jean-Loup Roubert, who oversaw the restoration process.

Mr. Roubert said that “the main challenge in the restoration project consisted in finding the truth of this building in the modern context, revealing its original characteristics while catering for changes in technology and lifestyle over the past half century.”

Encompassing 1,200 offices and 75,000 square metres of surface area, the glass and concrete design has been renovated to include more stringent security features, particularly at the entrances, while the heating and air-conditioning systems have also been overhauled to reduce energy consumption.

Many offices now enjoy better insulation, soundproofing and wiring, and the restaurant, cafeteria and kitchens have been re-modelled, according to a press release issued by UNESCO. Wireless Internet access has also been established.

Designed by Marcel Breuer (United States), Pier Luigi Nervi (Italy) and Bernard Zehrfuss (France), the complex was originally inaugurated in 1958 and the main building – there are four in the complex – became known as the “three-pointed star” for its shape.

While some critics considered the complex to be a concrete monstrosity in central Paris, others regarded it as a modernist masterpiece and its reputation has grown in the years since it opened. The buildings are home to numerous masterpieces of art, including works by Pablo Picasso, Joan Miró, Antoni Tàpies and Le Corbusier.