On the French Languedoc coast, where the Mediterranean meets the sand and marshes, stands an extraordinary city: La Grande Motte. Designed by visionary architect Jean Balladur in the 1960s and 1970s, the seaside resort is a realised utopia, an avante-garde place where modernity and nature coexist in harmony. A piooner of his time, Balladur rejected the city’s excessive use of concrete and instead evisioned “rebuilding a paradise, overrun by greenery.” It’s a dream like city, appearing like a mirage from the dense foliage, as though it has been plucked straight from a science fiction setting.
The design and construction of La Grande Motte dates back to the “Glorious Thirties”, a period of unprecedented economic growth in France, when paid vacations gave rise to mass tourism. The government, concerned about retaining vacationers who were heading to Spain and Côte d’Azur, planned the creation of a seaside resort. It is one of eight such destinations built between 1963 and 1983, capitalising on increased living standards, the democratisation of the automobile and the rise of holidays amongst the working classes. It is now a location familiar to many, including the artists Charley Broyez and Laurent Kronental: “In France, many people know La Grande Motte, without ever having been there. It is part of the collective imagination, frequently appearing in television reports, often associated with its attractive tourism and bold architecture.”
The seemly intersection between building and nature held a unique allure for the photographers. “It is one of the greenest resorts in Europe, serving as a source of inspiration for the city of tomorrow. Vegetation covers 70% of its territory, and nearly 50,000 trees have been planted since its construction. To protect this nature, the buildings have been staggered to slow the winds laden with mist, salt, and sand, creating a favourable climate for the growth of umbrella pines, plane trees, cypress trees, tamarisks, poplars, laurels, and more.” It is no surprise, then, that the pair chose to name their series “Oasis City”. Each image sees the white buildings framed by foliage, as beehive like structures nestle in shrubs and trees peer over walls. They present to us a new perspective on urban living.
The series was completed over four year and involved seven trips. They were carefully planned to be within the transitional months of early summer and the beginning of autumn. These periods provided a unique atmosphere, far from the tourist bustle, to reveal a more intimate side to the city. “It is during these interseasons that La Grande Motte seems to regain another sense of time, almost meditative, where the architecture subtly interacts with soft light and the surrounding nature.” Often returning to the same spots over and over, the artists came to know the subtleties of their subject, like when it best caught the sunlight or how shadows changed its shape. Many of their images are caught at sunset, the dusty pink hues adding to the dreamlike feeling of the place.
Words: Emma Jacob
Image Credits:
All images: La Cité Oasis © Charly Broyez & Laurent Kronental.
