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  2. Patrimoine
  3. Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
  4. Jura
  5. 39500 Tavaux

  6. Saint Anne parish church, Presbytery of Solvay city and landscape developments

Saint Anne parish church, Presbytery of Solvay city and landscape developments à Tavaux dans le Jura

Jura

Saint Anne parish church, Presbytery of Solvay city and landscape developments

    1 Avenue Alfred Solvay
    39500 Tavaux
Photo de Saint Anne parish church, Presbytery of Solvay city and landscape developments

Timeline

XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1900
2000
20 mai 1938
Laying the first stone
17 octobre - 5 décembre 1938
Creation of the fresco
3 septembre 1939
Inauguration of the church
2004
20th Century Heritage Label
2012
Installation of the organ
27 juillet 2023
Historical monument classification
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The parish church Sainte-Anne, its presbytery, including the gallery that connects them, and its landscape developments, in total, located avenue Ernest-Solvay and avenue Alfred-Solvay, Cité Solvay, on plots No. 43, 44, 549, 550 and 551, appearing in the cadastre of the commune section AH, as delimited in red on the plan annexed to the decree: classification by decree of 27 July 2023

Key figures

Henri Vidal - Architect Designer of the church and the city.
Rudolf Gowenius - Painter Author of the fresco of the choir.
Georges Saupique - Sculptor Christ on the cross of the facade.
Georges Rouault - Painter (aborted project) Pressenti for a window in 1937.
Labouret - Master glass Creator of stained glass tiles.
Poillerat - Ferronier Director of interior ironworks.

Origin and history

The Sainte-Anne de Tavaux church, built in the late 1930s by architect Henri Vidal, is part of the Solvay working-class project, originally conceived without a place of worship. Its first stone was laid on 20 May 1938, as evidenced by an engraved inscription, and its inauguration took place on 3 September 1939, the very day of the declaration of war against Germany. This historical context marks its entry into the twentieth century, between industrial modernity and religious traditions.

The building adopts a basilica plan, with a facade decorated with biblical symbols and an independent square bell tower. Its construction uses local limestone, identical to those of neighbouring workers' houses, while its apparent fir structure forms broken arches. The fresco of the choir, representing the Assumption of Mary, was made in 1938 by Swedish painter Rudolf Gowenius. The sculptor Georges Saupique contributed with a cross Christ on the gable, and the master glassmaker Labouret designed the stained glass windows.

Originally, an organ was planned, but the project was abandoned due to World War II. In 2012, a restored organ, symbolically acquired for a euro, was installed thanks to a local association, Les Amis de l'orgue de Sainte-Anne. This project was awarded in 2011 with the A Heritage for Tomorrow Award. The church, classified as a historical monument in 2023, embodies the alliance between industrial heritage, architectural innovations of the 1930s and sacred art.

The presbytery, connected to the church by a gallery, and the landscape arrangements complete this set labeled 20th century heritage in 2004. The city Solvay, designed for the workers of the nearby chemical factory, reflects a desire for architectural harmony, as evidenced by the parish hall added in 1961 with the financial support of the company. The interior decorations, though modest, illustrate the early liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

The Sainte-Anne church is distinguished by its integration into a global social project, where religious architecture dialogue with industrial urban planning. His history, marked by artistic collaborations (Gowenius, Saupique, Poillerat) and adaptations to community needs, makes him a major witness to the Franco-Movine heritage of the 20th century, between worker memory and artistic heritage.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum