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With Auguste Perret, the architectural quality of apartment blocks goes hand in hand with indisputable quality of life.
The people of Le Havre visit show flats where the rooms lay-out, the light, space, adjustable partitions, mass-produced furniture, fridge and pressure-cooker are must-have accessories. At that time, the fashion for domestic science is flourishing. Welcome to the world of the 1950s!
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The interior lay-outs of the first blocks follow the principles voiced by Perret, keen on “flexibility” of the arrangement. The wishes and “personality of the resident” must be respected as he will “decorate his home” and “this decoration will vary”. (Perret, 1924).
The new interior lay-outs require, from the very start, the work of decorators, true architects of the home, whose mass-produced furniture will become an inherent part of show flats, such as the ones presented in Ideal Home Exhibitions (1949-1952) and on the reconstruction sites (1951-1954).
The choices for interior lay-out were guided by the furniture designed for the show flats at Le Havre and meant for the war victims: a lounge by René Gabriel (Urbanism Exhibition of 1947) or a children’s bedroom by Marcel Gascoin (Porte Océane and Perrey District, 1952-1953). These decorators are fully conscious of the “luxury for all” concept and their furniture gets widely distributed.
The fashion for domestic science goes hand in hand with a need for economic boost encouraged by State institutions. Before WWII, a fridge, washing-machine, gas oven, hot plate, hoover would have been rare and expensive appliances. But in America, they are already playing a major part in the home, are also at the origin of a profit-making production system, and are generating new jobs.
The 1950s are a time of renewed hope and general recognition. After the difficulty of evaluating war damages, housing blocks are built ever faster. Monuments are added and the Sunday outing is now an opportunity to walk the children in order to admire the Town Hall building site or that of Saint-Joseph’s church, its tower reaching dizzy heights.
