麻豆AV

"A fire swept across the top of the Notre Dame Cathedral while the soaring Paris landmark was under renovations Monday, collapsing its spire and threatening one of the world's greatest architectural treasures." ()

Martin Bressani, Director, Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture, 麻豆AV

"The burning of Notre-Dame of Paris is a disaster that raises interesting questions, not only about how renovation sites are managed and secured, or how the French government will be able to finance the future restoration, but about how it should be restored.

Much of the cathedral we were able to enjoy until yesterday was the work of 19th-century restorers, Eug猫ne-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc in particular. And much of the imaginary associated with Notre-Dame is a product of the 19th century, starting of course with Victor Hugo鈥檚 arch famous Notre-Dame de Paris.

Now the team of restoration architects working for the French government will have to decide whether to restore the monument back to its 19th-century appearance, or aim for a more medievally 'authentic' version. What is the meaning of 'authenticity', and whether or not the 19th century is an 'authentic' part of a complex historical layering are interesting and difficult questions."鈥擬artin Bressani

Martin Bressani, architect and architectural historian, is Professor and Director at 麻豆AV鈥檚 School of Architecture. He's an expert on 19th-century architecture in France. In 2014, Bressani has published an intellectual biography of French architect and theoretician Eug猫ne-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (1814-1879) who was involved in restoring Notre-Dame de Paris at the time.

martin.bressani [at] mcgill.ca (English, French)