Contemporary art |

Art in the service of architecture

Great figures of contemporary architecture have signed important buildings in Rouen.
The 108, headquarters of the Metropole on the left bank quays, is the mark of Jacques Ferrier. With its transparent facades that play with the light variations of the Norman sky and the reflections of the Seine, it won the 2017 American Architecture Prize. Dominique Perrault designs the Kindarena sports hall and its hypnotic mirror effects. Rudy Ricciotti takes onthe Simone de Beauvoir library, imagining dancing concrete mikado facades, and Bernard Tshumi puts all his genius intothe Zenith with its so remarkable elliptical shape, bristling with three masts.

Reclaiming port areas

Rouen is strongly reconnecting with the life of its river, west of the city. A vast urban project transforms the former industrial and port wastelands into places for walking and recreation.The Luciline eco-district was born in 2009 with the construction of housing, offices and the Docks 76 shopping center, which was established in a former warehouse on the right bank. Le 106, a former port shed, becomes a magnificent current music venue recognizable by its two big yellow cranes that point skyward, on the left bank docks. The Flaubert district begins its transformation in 2021, near the famous Gustave Flaubert Bridge, Europe’s tallest lift bridge, which marks the limit of the river accessible to maritime vessels. It was put into service in 2008 after four years of work.

Contemporary architecture is also the Rouen Law School, the undulating building La Filature de la Matmut and exciting rehabilitation projects. Look at the Atrium, this former Ecole Normale Supérieure has been transformed into a magnificent scientific exhibition space, with its central interior courtyard and glass roof, covered with an innovative, high-performance climate membrane. For its part, the Cloister of the Penitents marries the sub-basement of an old convent from 1612 and an upper part restored in a modern way by architect Massimiliano Fuksas in 1989.

Clearing galleries

The Metropolis is full ofexhibition venues that bring contemporary art to life. So go to the Fonds régional d’art contemporain (Frac) Normandie Rouen, at the castle of Centre d’art contemporain Matmut, which has become an institution, at SHED in Maromme with its industrial atmosphere,at Hangar 109, at Epoxy and all the way to the eleven museums of the Metropole which offer today’s artists to put their works in dialogue with the permanent collections during the event La Ronde. Take advantage, it’s free!

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Guided tourRouen and its treasures

To meet a city is to discover its most beautiful treasures and to savor its history! Follow the guide, from the Cathedral to the Place du Vieux Marché, discover the half-timbered houses and vibrate with the memory of Joan of Arc. Anecdotes, historical landmarks and architectural surprises are on the program!

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Sensory visitThe Cathedral, measures and excesses

This original tour appeals to your senses and reveals a little more of the beauty of Rouen’s cathedral. Feel the vertigo of its dimensions, soak up the resonance of its acoustics and play with the principles of its gothic architecture.

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Unusual visitDeath as an art of living

From the Middle Ages to modern times, the people of Rouen lived with death in their daily lives. Discover the incredible history of the Aître Saint-Maclou or the Place du Vieux-Marché, where Joan of Arc was tortured, and look at the tombs, sculptures and stained glass windows that shed light on the evolution of our relationship with death.

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