More than 2,000 companions mobilized, 700 million euros in budget… The restoration project of Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral was, in many respects, exceptional. It took more than five years since the dramatic fire which affected part of the religious building on April 15 and 16, 2019 for the site to regain its splendor.
Its reopening, announced for December 7, in the presence of the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, is imminent. The cathedral should welcome “14 to 15 million visitors” the year of its reopening, according to the Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati.
The chief architect of Historic Monuments, Philippe Villeneuve, is one of the leaders of this project. An exciting adventure that he has forever engraved on the skin of his arm, in the form of a tattoo representing the spire of the cathedral. In a long interview, he tells us the story of this XXL operation.
Batiactu: Where is the construction site of Notre-Dame de Paris?
Philippe Villeneuve: We have almost completed the reconstruction and restoration project. There is still the arrow to complete. Current work mainly concerns electrical networks and cables. The project brought together nearly 2,000 people. Notre-Dame de Paris was a fantastic companionship school for the trades involved in this project. The fire finally brought the monument up to what it should be. If the fire had not occurred, the cathedral would have been restored over the years, depending on the budget.
“We did not use digital readings for the design”
This project certainly promotes an identical restoration, but have contemporary techniques been implemented?
Contemporary restoration techniques, no. We used kaolin sand poultices [des argiles blanches, friables et réfractaires, NDLR] and water to extract the salts from the masonry but this is not an ultra-contemporary technique. We also used the laser, sometimes, to clean. As architects, we have not relied on digital surveys for design. Our job is to know the monument, its structures and materials. I don't need a computer to know if Notre Dame is in danger of collapsing or not.
You were entrusted with responsibility for Notre-Dame de Paris in 2013. Six years passed before the fire of April 15, 2019. What did you learn about the building during this period?
I had the keys and could go anywhere. So I discovered inaccessible places but I already knew the cathedral well and learned nothing that fundamentally called into question what I knew. The construction site revealed the thickness of the vaults, the composition of the mortars… But every day, I discover things.
Exactly, what have you discovered recently?
Details, asymmetries…
So we even have to respect asymmetries?
My motto on this site,
You have 75% left to discover.
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