françois chatillon restores great war battlefield in north east france

for the 100th anniversary of the armistice on november 11th 2018, françois chatillon architecte invites us to remember the great war with the restoration of the battlefield of verdun in douaumont, france. the architect was tasked with the challenge of restoring a site that remains permanently bruised by the first world war and to represent and interpret to the present world what happened to the generations of those who tragically died in battle.

all images by cyrille weiner, courtesy of françois chatillon

the concept of françois chatillon architecte is to support the visitor’s journey through the site and to afford the viewer moments of contemplation and silence that the landscape at douaumont commands. the architect proposed very simple designs and the needs of the viewer are expressed simply; an elevator so that everyone can access the site, and accessible pathways to ensure ease of passage and support the idea of quiet discovery. the rusted sheet that encloses the elevator supports the theme further as it displays written information to encourage visitors, and especially younger generations, to learn about the events at the battle of verdun 100 years ago.

the battle of verdun is remembered here in two forms, firstly the solemn monuments that are engraved with the names, dates and places of battle. secondly the grounds of the battlefield itself, that have been left deliberately by the architect with no attempts being made to restore order to a landscape which has since been reclaimed by nature. the embankments and screes have been left untouched. the purpose of this project by françois chatillon architecte is to give the visitor time, not to understand, but to concede to the flood of bombs that fell for four years on douaumont and to acknowledge the thousands of victims that were felt during the great war.

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom