La Reconstruction à Marseille 1940 - 1960

Focused on the rebuilding of Vieux-Port in Marseilles, destroyed by the Germans in 1943, this book published by Imbernon Publishers develops nevertheless a broader approach:
- In time, when the inter-world wars period and the global conflict, the visions and plans of which announce the demolition/rebuilding process.
- In space, because of Le Corbusier's plans for Marseilles and the consideration of national context.
The rebuilding of the district of the Vieux-Port, beyond intrinsic quality of some architectures which are acknowledged nowadays -like Fernand Pouillon's-, produces high-value urban fragment. Far from the aesthetic ideal of homogeneity that was consensual at that time, there is a real metaphor about the city in History, an imperfect palimpsest which kept traces of its conditions of manufacture. The urban landscape that results from it, returns a rich complexity in which collective aim as well as singular architectural discourses is affirmed. Unlike the harbour of Le Havre, this heritage is in the process of recognition and protection.