The Grande Arche
de la Fraternité is a monument in the business district of La Défense to the west of Paris. It is usually known as the Arche de la Défense or simply as La Grande Arche.
Danish architect Johann Otto von Spreckelsen designed it to be a 20th century version of the Arc de Triomphe: a monument to humanity and humanitarian ideals rather than military victories. His associate, French architect Paul Andreu, completed the work after Spreckelsen's death in 1987.
The Arche is almost a perfect cube (width: 108m, height: 110m, depth: 112m). It has a pre-stressed concrete frame covered with glass and Carrara marble from Italy.
It was built by the French civil engineering company Bouygues. |