A R C H I T E C T A T W O R K
JEAN-MICHEL WILMOTTE, THE ARCHITECTWITH A THOUSAND AND ONE PROJECTS He is currently working on a largescale project for MGallery: transforming Reine Margot’s (Marguerite of Valois) vacation home into a hotel and spa in the outskirts of Paris. We spoke to him about his vision of the trade, how he works and this construction site in progress.
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By ELVIRA MASSON
T he list of your creations and projects, be they public or private, makes one's head spin in its wealth and diversity. You don’t often see an architect that can work on such a wide variety of operations. How do you do it? That is exactly the secret to creativity: being able to go from one project to another, from one scale to another. If I only did the same thing, only hospitals or only hotels I’d probably get bored. Working on a waste sorting plant in Italy, a cathedral in Moscow (soon) and the museum in Tashkent gives me the mental agility necessary for creativity to emerge.
I do and that my collaborators then develop, improving the idea I started with.
As we speak, our photographer, Raphaël Lugassy, is in the material resource center. You seldom have such a great resource within easy reach… Actually we have the largest material resource center in Paris; others envied us then copied us. Two people are there full time. Their mission is to find products all over the world: stone, wood, technical material, through specialized fairs and conventions. Every week, we review these innovations in the field of lighting, switches, door handles, tiling. We try to keep abreast of all the innovations almost in real time. By innovations I mean products that will last in time, not "fashion" creations that will quickly be outdated. “IF I ONLY DID THE SAME THING, ONLY HOSPITALS OR ONLY HOTELS I’D PROBABLY GET BORED.”
So, would you turn down any type of project flat out, at first glance?
the house DNA well, I let them evolve alone more and when a new adventure presents itself, I do a sort of casting. I choose the collaborators according to their trade, their competence – architecture, interior design, restoration – but also their affinities: I won’t attribute a project for a wine cellar to someone who doesn’t drink wine for instance. I adapt my team to the client, so that personalities on both sides can get along. And it all starts with the sketch
Only if the client is unpleasant. In my opinion, human relationships are what is most important.
What is the Wilmotte company like?
It was very small to start with and has grown, there are 280 of us now. I hire people I can build affinities with based on common vocabulary and knowhow. When they master
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