The City of Light Welcomes the World
Last week, Paris held opening ceremonies for the 2024 Summer Games, which was unlike anything the Olympics had ever seen. To utilize the iconic Seine River cutting straight through the heart of Paris, the opening processional sent competing nations floating down the river on boats sporting their national colors, waving their flags proudly. Other side spectacles surrounding the United Nations flotilla included a fashion show catwalk on a pedestrian bridge, a floating course of ramps with jumping bike riders, and break-dancing Parisians dotting the riverbanks; I doubt we will see these types of attractions in another opening ceremony. Though somewhat dampened by rain, it was pretty admirable on the giant swing Paris had taken with such a fresh idea. The organizers took an event which has more or less been done the same way for a century, and asked how can we make this our own?
Due to this opening party showcase and the plan to have triathlon competitors swim in the river, the Seine’s cleanliness was a major concern in the weeks leading up to the games. The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, remained adamant that rehabilitation efforts would have the water in proper shape and even promised to take a dip in a display of solidarity.
As part of their winning bid to host, the city only had to construct two new venues to provide the necessary coterie of facilities for the various events. This is a particularly attractive idea when you realize the vast amount of evidence showing that new construction in service of hosting an Olympics often has terrible economic ramifications for the host city.
The utilization of their iconic structures and spaces is where Paris will truly set itself apart and look like no other Olympics we’ve seen in recent memory. Firstly, the fencing and taekwondo competitions are taking place in the Grand Palais. Primarily used for exhibitions throughout its history, the fascinating structure composed of soaring barrel vault trusses, ornate metal work, and an impossibly intricate glass-paneled ceiling recently underwent extensive renovations to make the space accessible for hosting such events. Watching these hotly contested combat sports housed in such a proper and fantastical setting will be quite a spectacle of juxtaposition. Taking a virtual tour around the Grand Palais it reads far more fit for a fashion show than stabbing your opponent with a sword. Nevertheless, I think it will be a stunning visual.
In the trend of experiencing breathtaking views while taking in athletic competition, several arenas have been erected within the famous gardens and plazas synonymous with Parisian urban design. Those who have visited Washington DC will recognize some striking similarities with the layout of our National Mall, surrounded by government structures and cultural institutions. The beach volleyball games will take place in an open-air stadium on the Champ de Mars directly in front of the Eiffel Tower, and the BMX and skateboarding competitions will be held in the Place de la Concorde overlooking the iconic Jardin des Tuileries.
While the common school of thought may have been to place these events in your run-of-the-mill stadium, event organizers thought about what makes their city unique. They integrated these venues within quintessential Parisian landmarks. Given these garden areas are already well-trodden territory by tourists, providing expansive areas for people to mill around the games will make them feel like they’re part of the action without being within the actual stadium.
I am perhaps most excited to see the transformation of the Palace of Versailles gardens to be used in hosting the Equestrian and Pentathlon competitions. I suppose the particular tax bracket involved in Equestrian activities is pretty comfortable in such environments. Still, I could not imagine competing in an Olympic games surrounded by one of the most gaudy symbols of wealth that Earth has to offer. In what landed him a 2024 NBC Olympic commentating gig, Snoop Dogg famously equated a trotting horse competing in Dressage to a crip walk. Find more Snoop here.
I, for one, can’t wait to hear the rapper-turned-commentator once again deliver some more gems about the fierce sport of horse dancing.
Lessons from the Unconventional
So, what can we learn from the successful competition layout in these historically significant spaces? Especially in revamping existing structures, event designers and Architects recognized beauty worth keeping, celebrating and emphasizing. They updated the functionality to make it more suitable for the Olympic events while refurbishing what made these places iconic in the first place. As designers, when we begin planning a renovation of a historical nature, an important early decision is to decide what elements are worth keeping to fit the overall desired aesthetic and honor the history of a building. Unfortunately, sometimes, there are beautiful original elements that have fallen into such disrepair that it is not feasible to refurbish them within the allotted budget. As part of our initial Exploration Consultation, we can help identify priorities like integrating historic building traits in a fresh renovation.
Another design tactic smartly wielded in Paris, is thinking about alternate uses of space that wouldn’t necessarily jump to mind. When the Grand Palais was constructed over a century ago, I doubt anyone envisioned athletic competition within the building. Still, organizers utilized classic Parisian landmarks, sometimes tailoring them specially to showcase various Olympic events. On projects working with condensed square footage (often in urban settings), we must study how space can be multi-use and allow the end-user maximum flexibility. This often comes in the form of viewing an existing room use (in the case of a renovation) and observing how a reallocation or sharing of space can better serve our client. With the advent of many industries adopting work-from-home policies, residences especially have been asked to become as flexible as ever. We are here to help identify those possibilities in maximizing your space to most comfortably move throughout the activities of life.
Looking Forward to the Roles of an Icon
Now that the games are underway, I will be quite interested to see how these spectacular settings are captured in the telecast and addressed by those commentating on the events. How can someone attend an event in the Gardens of Versailles and not address the wild setting they’re witnessing? It’s truly stuff out of a storybook. And moving on as it relates to our role in the design world, these Olympic games will be a fantastic case study in honoring your past, while looking to innovate, bringing a space into modern times. Given the next opportunity, we can all take a page out of Paris’ playbook and look to attack a difficult problem from a completely fresh perspective.
