Initial mass plan 1962 (≈ 1962)
Adoption of the seven-round draft.
1963
Design of the tower
Design of the tower 1963 (≈ 1963)
Project entrusted to Renée Gailhoustet.
1966-1968
Construction of the tower
Construction of the tower 1966-1968 (≈ 1967)
Made of visible concrete.
1969
Project renewal
Project renewal 1969 (≈ 1969)
Transition to table-top urban planning.
24 juin 2021
Partial classification
Partial classification 24 juin 2021 (≈ 2021)
Fronts and bearings protected.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The following parts of the Raspail Tower, located 4 Raspail Street, on Parcel No. 153, shown in the Cadastre section AN: the facades and roofs, the entrance hall and the seven bearings serving the elevators, located in the central block, as delimited by a red border on the plans annexed to the Order: inscription by order of 24 June 2021
Key figures
Renée Gailhoustet - Architect
Conceptor of the Raspail Tower.
Jean Renaudie - Associate architect
Collaborator on urban renewal.
Origin and history
The Raspail Tower, located in Ivry-sur-Seine (Val-de-Marne), was designed in 1963 by architect Renée Gailhoustet as part of an extensive urban renewal project. Built between 1966 and 1968, it is part of the first mass plan of 1962, which provided for seven towers and slab bars. Only five rounds were made, four of them by Gailhoustet, before the project was rethought in 1969 towards a table-top urbanisation.
The building, inspired by Le Corbusier's housing unit, is distinguished by its apparent concrete and brutalistic aesthetic. Composed of two rectangular bodies framed by a central block of vertical traffic (lifts, stairs), the tower houses 80 social housing units (including three-storey semi-duplexes), shops, offices, and six duplex artists' workshops on the top floor. Its facades alternate loggias and banner windows, while the roof terrace, initially a collective garden, completes the ensemble.
Partially classified as Historic Monuments in 2021, the Raspail Tower illustrates the social and architectural innovation of the 1960s. Its luminous bearings, entrance hall and facades are protected, reflecting the audacity of Gailhoustet, who also collaborated with Jean Renaudie on this project. The tower embodies a humanistic vision of housing, combining functionality, light and shared spaces.
The context of its construction reflects the ambitions of the Thirty Glorious: modernising cities through large ensembles, while integrating public facilities. Ivry-sur-Seine, a changing working-class city, becomes a laboratory of social architecture, where concrete is at the service of an unprecedented quality of life for the popular classes. The Raspail Tower, with its artists' workshops, also symbolizes the desire to democratize culture.
