I've recently read about this project from
Oxo architects who are based in Paris. Their concept is to give the 16 disused 'ghost stations' in Paris a new use. Some of the stations have been left vacant after the war and some have simply never been opened. I think it's an incredible idea, I would 100% go to each of them. Swim over the old tracks. Yes. Watch a show/movie in the old arches, totally. Eat dinner surrounded by modern decor and hints of the old tracks, tiles and bricks. I'm down.
''THE PROJECT
The parisian métropolitain is closely related to the
life of the City of Light.
Its stations are nearly as famous as its bouleverds,
its churches, its museums.
From Champs-Elysées to Bastille, from Arts et
Métiers to Châtelet, each one is unique, each one has its own story to tell. Every Parisian has their favorite metro station!
Some emblematic places in
Paris, such as l'Arsenal, Porte des Lilas, Porte Molitor or Champs de Mars,
used to have namesake metro stations. But after closure, they slowly fell into
oblivion.
This project aims to bring back to life these ghost stations by
giving them a new purpose.
At a time when New-York is talking about the
'Lowline', why couldn't Paris profit from its underground potential and invent
new functions for these abandoned places?
This is about a slow transformation,
to find, as opportunities arise, a new and thrilling way to take possession of
these places.
To swim in the metro seems like a crazy dream, but it could soon
come true!
Turning a former metro station into a swimming-pool or a
gymnasium could be a way to compensate for the lack of sports and leisure
facilities in some areas.
A theatre on a disused platform could be an amazing
venue for artists, choreographers or dancers to perform, in an outstanding yet
familiar setting.
Why not open a night club in the Arsenal station? Close
to La Bastille, a vibrant neighbourhood, it is the perfect location to party in
the heart of Paris without the risk of disturbing the neighbours.
An underground
garden could be a place to enjoy calm and quietness on a rainy day, in a
completely new environment.
And why not also imagine an art gallery, a space
for artists to work and perform, or even a restaurant!
Far from their original
purpose, more than a century after the opening of Paris' underground network,
these places could show they're still able to offer new urban experiments.''
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| Art gallery |
 |
| Theatre |
 |
| Restaurant |
 |
| Pool |
 |
| Garden |
 |
| Club |
