Bâtiment Colbert

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Bâtiment « Colbert »
Ministère de l'Économie et des Finances
Rue de Bercy
Quartier de Bercy, 12th arrondissement
Paris, July 2002

“The Ministry of the Economy and Finance building (Siège du ministère de l'Économie et des Finances) is the headquarters of the French Ministry of the Economy and Finance or the departments in which it is occasionally redistributed, built in the 1980s in the Bercy area of the 12th arrondissement of Paris. It is commonly known as Bercy, a term also used by metonymy for the ministry itself. It was commissioned as part of the Grands Travaux of President François Mitterrand, and designed by the architects Paul Chemetov and Borja Huidobro for the main area, as well as Louis Arretche and Roman Karasinsky for the two northwestern buildings. It is a massive complex made of several buildings, named after major French statesmen (Colbert, Necker, Sully, Turgot, Vauban), as well as of a detached convention centre. It includes both a port, where the southern end plunges into the river Seine, and a heliport, although no longer used. In addition, the building spans over two major roads, and has a wing adjacent to the gare de Lyon. As typical of postmodern architecture, it includes inspirations from the history of architecture, such as the general shape of a viaduct, a (dry) moat, and a large ceremonial bronze gate. The entrance, and postal address (139, rue de Bercy), is a pre-existing and much smaller pavilion. It is sometimes called a ‘citadel’ or ‘fortress’, in reference to the building's impressive architecture as well as to the power of the department within the Government of France. Construction lasted between 1984 and 1989. The ministry was previously housed since 1871 in the Richelieu Wing of the Louvre, which needed to be vacated as part of the Grand Louvre project.” (Ministry of the Economy and Finance building, Wikipedia)