R4 plastic and visual arts portal on ile seguin | Ateliers Jean Nouvel

The R4 plastic and visual arts portal is a space right at the heart of the cultural and urban project on Ile Seguin. Backed by Yves Bouvier and conceived and directed by Nelly Wenger, R4 will be a cultural amenity of the highest standard of excellence and of national and international significance. It will bring together, on the same site and in an innovative manner, varied and complementary protagonists from the world of art in order to generate a stimulating and creative environment. Its ambition is to foster interaction and cooperation between the producers of culture and knowledge, commercial players and the general public. The architectural plan for R4, entrusted to Jean Nouvel, harks back to the industrial past of the site, an imaginative universe that has been retained precisely for its capacity to interact with art, its creation, its production, its presentation, and the enhancement of its value. An “artistic micro-city”, R4 will comprise exhibition spaces, galleries, artists’ studios, salesrooms and storerooms (some of which will be open to the public) as well as a creative platform, a conference centre and sizeable logistics areas. R4’s ambitions will be realised through the extreme versatility of the spaces being made available to the users. Designed to be both multi-purpose and functional, R4’s architectural structure makes it a living matrix open to hybrid use of the space and capable of continual adaptation to the evolving needs of its partners and the specific expectations of the various actors in the world of art. These methods of use are intended to break down the boundaries between “stage” and “backstage”. Exemplifying the spirit of R4 and its cultural ambitions, a preliminary programme called “allez-y!”, aims to “break new ground” in this embryonic space. Symbolically taking possession of the site, “allez-y!” opened on 7 July 2012 with a day of art and festivities and continues with a collaboration with the FIAC from 16 to 21 October 2012. R4 is being developed on a site covering around 8,000 m², with a total floor space of almost 30,000 m², which is divided into 5 levels: 2 underground, 2 floors and a roof terrace. R4 is planned to include various large complexes, as follows: a multi purpose, flexible exhibition hall. This will be R4’s showcase, and is intended to accommodate large-scale exhibitions, ensuring that the site becomes a key venue on the French and international cultural scene. The hall covers a surface area of 1,200 m², with a floor to ceiling height of 9 m, and provides flexibility of use thanks to a design that enables its volumes to be reconfigured. This area encourages collaboration between all the actors on the site, whether they be artists, gallerists or collectors. The programme is thus intended to include events of longer duration (trade fairs, biennials, travelling exhibitions, festivals) as well as more short-lived events (happenings, performances and conferences). a fully removable conference and press centre This connecting area between the exhibition hall and the galleries is designed to accommodate autonomous events as well as those that are directly related to the programming, including art previews, performances, press conferences, screenings, shows, debates and auctions, but also seminars and corporate meetings. Television and radio studios will be located in direct proximity to this area. art galleries One of R4’s major assets is that it is designed to accommodate around 20 art galleries, thereby concentrating the offer in a single location and providing a dense network that is unavailable elsewhere in Paris. These galleries will also have office space combined with a presentation area integrated into an exhibition platform that they can rent according to their needs, the nature of their offer and the state of their market. These platforms are also suitable for collaboration between galleries when the focus is placed on a single exhibition or artist. They will also have storage opportunities accessible to clients as well as more private presentation rooms and a club where they can receive guests in a more exclusive setting. a creative platform and artists’ studios The creative platform is able to accommodate one or more artists invited by R4, by galleries or by patrons. The appropriate means of production will be placed at their disposal, but there will also be possibilities for interaction with collectors, gallerists, or other artists.