November Talks 2018: Marc Barani

Marc Barani, finalist of the European Prize for Contemporary Architecture 2009, will be the first guest of the November Talks 2018 – Visions series on Monday, November 5, 2018, at 6:30 PM at the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University. The importance of visions in architecture and urbanism will be defended by three other prominent foreign architects in the November lecture series – Vasa Perović, Mario Corea, and Grégoire Zündel.

November Talks 2018 – Visions is part of a series organized by the Sto Foundation in Europe for the 13th year. In November, it takes place not only in Prague but also at architecture schools in Stuttgart, Graz, Milan, Paris, and London.

Marc Barani is a finalist of the European Prize for Contemporary Architecture (2009), a laureate of the French National Grand Prix for Architecture (2013), and a recipient of the Gold Medal of the French Academy of Architecture (2018).

After studying architecture and urbanism, Marc Barani devoted himself to anthropology and spent a year in Nepal on a study trip. His architectural firm, founded in 1989 in Nice, brings together architects, scenographers, designers, and landscape architects. The studio works on projects of very diverse nature and scale, from buildings for culture, education, housing, and administration to transportation infrastructure.

Marc Barani was nominated for the European Prize for Contemporary Architecture 2009 (Mies van der Rohe Award) for the project of the tram terminal for the city of Nice. The project, which initially suffered from a poorly chosen construction site, was literally restarted by Barani's education in architecture and anthropology. He convinced the city council to change the assignment, found a more suitable location, recognized its potential, and proposed a solution that elevated the technical infrastructure project to a revitalizing intervention for a previously disadvantaged part of the city. The new terminal, including a maintenance building, offices, parking, and a park, emerged in a place that nobody expected anything from, between the highway and a residential area from the 1970s. Its shape connected to complex communications, took advantage of the sea view, and provided the neighboring estate with missing public space and services.

For his timeless architectural works characterized by precise construction details and an extension into urbanism and landscape architecture, Marc Barani was awarded the Gold Medal of the French Academy of Architecture in June this year. Its past recipients include Norman Foster, Jean Nouvel, and Shigeru Ban.