Situated in the business area of La Defense, west from Paris, the Grande Arche de la Defense is among Francois Mitterand's 'grands projets'.
Its construction was launched in 1983 but its main architect, the danish Otto Von Spreckelsen, died before its inauguration in 1989.
This 108 X 110 X 112 m marble cube faces his "brother" the Arc de Triomphe de l"Etoile.
The 'blanket' shaped glassfiber 'thing' , suspended between the 6 pillars holding the structure, wasn't part of the initial project but had to be added due to balance reasons.
The building hosts in 87 000m2 the french Equipment ministery's offices.
On the topmost floor are situated a modern art exhibithion center and a restaurant ("Le toit de l'arche", serving a decent "nouvelle cuisine").
The panoramic terrace on the roof provides an incredible view on Paris.
To access one of those 3 attractions, you have to take the completely tranparent glass lifts you can see inside the cube, left of the building.
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Phone: 01 49 07 27 27
Address: 1 parvis de la Défense-92044 Paris La Défense
Directions: Metro or RER La Defense
Website: http://www.grandearche.com
Île-de-France
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on Jan 1, 2005
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