La Défense #16: West End: Hémicycle et Ellipse
By Hans-Josef Jeanrond on Saturday 14 July 2007, 19:45 - La Défense - Permalink
"Rounded Squares"
Espaces arrondies
Kurven und Plätze
Place de l'Hémicycle with the Société Générale tower in the back
(Click on the image to enlarge)
Beyond the Grande Arche and the Renaissance Hotel you don't meet many visitors
any more. Three "rounded squares": Place Ronde, Place de l'Hémicycle, Place de
l'Ellipse, follow each other in the direct neighbourhood of the two half round
towers of Société Générale.
I don't have a nice image of glass covered Place Ronde yet, so you will just
get an idea of the two adjacent Places de l'Hémicycle et de l'Ellipse.
On week-ends both are completely deserted. While place de l'Ellipse is not
really meant for the general public - there is nothing to invite you walk
around or sit down - the emptiness of Place de l'Hémicycle with its benches and
restaurant is quite spooky. I'll have to come back on a week-day. Nevertheless,
the bold architecture of the place and the Société Générale building "towering"
above it is quite striking.
Place de l'Hémicycle (Click to enlarge)
Place de l'Hémicycle in the evening, looking "outward"
You will probably better understand the reflection of the "deconstructed white
bar" when you look at the image and the map inserted at the end to facilitate
orientation.
Place de l'Hémicycle in the evening
Place de l'Ellipse
The stark contrast are slightly mitigated using a simple "freeware" for Tone
Range Mapping. Not quite satisfactory yet, but I am still experimenting and
learning.
Place de l'Ellipse in the evening
The weird silvery reflection that looks like a smoking chimney is in fact a
chimney, but it is not "smoking". The upper part is distorted into a smudge by
a window pane that seems to be under particular stress, quite different in any
case from the one just below.
And here you see how the two places are "hidden" behind a white wall when
looking towards them from the North. Place de l'Ellipse is the right "opening"
on the image, place de l'Ellipse the left one. .
To help your orientation, I also add an extract of a map.
(Click to enlarge)
