Jacques Ferrier


Jacques Ferrier is an architect and urban planner.

Biography

Following his architectural training at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Belleville and the École Centrale de Paris, he created his own architecture firm, , in Paris in 1993. His portfolio of work includes cultural and leisure facilities, showcase buildings, public buildings.
His projects follow a clear philosophy: creating architecture and cities for a creative and sustainable society.
In 2010, Jacques Ferrier and Pauline Marchetti, in collaboration with the philosopher Philippe Simay, created , a research laboratory devoted to a forward-looking, humanistic and sensitive approach to the city and architecture.
Jacques Ferrier is the author of a number of works and articles on the subject of architecture. His architectural work has been the subject of many publications, especially The Architecture of Jacques Ferrier. He has been made both a Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite and a Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres.

Vision

The Sensual City is a project that answers the urgent question of what urban planning should be both today and tomorrow. The urban culture developed in the 20th century is steadily expanding and over half the world’s population now lives in cities, a proportion that is continually increasing and causing functional problems on an unprecedented scale. It is a situation that threatens our planet’s resources, as well as the way we live together in cities. In the western world, there is a need to go beyond the traditional model of the historical urban model –European and American-, take a fresh look not only at the city core, but also at the suburbs, the infrastructure, the transportation systems… and accept that they represent a fully-fledged contemporary urban landscape. Throughout the world and on all continents, giant cities with over ten million inhabitants are taking form. In the 21st century, hundreds of millions of people will find themselves living in an exclusively urban environment, an artificial universe in which technology will be omnipresent.
With the Sensual City, the intention is to develop an alternative approach, one in which technology is not obtrusive nor an end in itself. On the contrary, as technology is perfected it becomes invisible, it disappears from view and allows people to live in cities that can be construed as built landscapes, designed to offer a full sensorial experience. The city becomes an environment that incorporates a high level of sustainable development as well as a setting where people can take pleasure in living together and relate to its history as the founding source of civilization. To achieve these ends, it is essential that the city be deeply rooted to its specific culture, climate and geography.
The Sensual City was the subject of a symposium organized at the Collège de France in September 2009. Internationally recognized personalities - architects, urban planners, scientists, philosophers, sociologists and artists - crossed their eyes on the theme of sensuality linked to architecture and city planning.

Achievementshttp://archiguide.free.fr/AR/ferrier.htm ARCHIGUIDE http://www.culture.gouv.fr/culture/rdv-archi2005/bios-7avrilam.html Ministère de la Culture

Main works