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Origin and history

The funeral home of 108 rue d'Aubervilliers, in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, was built between 1872 and 1874 under the direction of architects Édouard Delebarre Debay and Godon, supervised by Victor Baltard. Ordered by the archdiocese of Paris to centralize funeral services, it replaces the former slaughterhouses of Villette-Popincourt on a plot of 26 000 m2. Its industrial style, inspired by the universal stations and exhibitions, combines brick, glass, cast iron and iron, with two large halls 270 meters long, stables, and workshops dedicated to the manufacture of coffins and funeral ornaments.

Inaugurated in 1874, the site employs up to 1,400 people in the 20th century, organizing 150 daily convoys. The first hall, rue d'Aubervilliers, houses the coffin and catafalca preparation workshops, while the second, rue Curial, serves as a garage for 80 hearses and 300 horses. After 1905, the service became municipal following the separation of the churches and the state. During the wars (1939-1945, Indochina, Algeria), the building exceptionally welcomed bodies repatriated for identification by families.

Activity declined after the end of the municipal monopoly in 1993 and ceased in 1997. Ranked a historic monument in 1997 for its facades, roofs and halls, the site was rehabilitated between 2003 and 2008 by architects Marc Iseppi and Jacques Pajot. In 2008 it reopened under the name Centfour-Paris, a public cultural institution combining artist residences, exhibitions and events. The old stables, transformed into modular spaces, host salons and parades, while the halls now house artistic creation plateaux.

The initial project aims to open up the neighbourhood and create an accessible art centre, but meets with criticism for its lack of audience and its high cost (8 million euros of annual grant). Under the direction of José-Manuel Gonçalvès from 2010, then Valérie Senghor since 2025, the Centfour is gradually imposing itself as a hybrid place, combining contemporary art, public events and industrial memory of the site.

Architecturally, the building retains its original structure: glass windows, English courtyards, and facades closed on the streets, creating a contrast between external austerity and interior opening. Its inscription in the title of historical monuments underlines its heritage importance, both as a witness to the Parisian funeral history and as an early example of functionalist architecture in France.

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