Jean Ginsberg (1905-1983), considered the 'father of modern housing,' a French architect of Polish-Jewish descent, realised more than twenty residential buildings in the 16th district of Paris. An analysis of his projects in this part of the city reveals an evolution in his work - from the 1930s modernist concept of the 'machine for living' to the standardisation of social housing after the Second World War.

Birth of a star

Ginsberg was one of the leading 20th-century architects active in the French capital. He was born in Częstochowa. After graduating from the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology (1923), he went on to study art history at the University of Berlin (1923) and then continued his education at the École spéciale d'architecture in Paris (1924-1929). Among his teachers at the time were prominent architects such as Robert Mallet-Stevens and Joseph Marrast.

After a brief apprenticeship in the studios of Le Corbusier and André Lurçat, he founded his own design office in 1930 under the name Jean Ginsberg & Partners. During his career, he collaborated with many renowned architects, including Berthold Lubetkin, Franz (François) Heep, Georges Massé, Georges Goldberg, Eugène Beaudouin and Jerzy Czyz.

Characteristics of the work

Among architects active in the 20th century, he stood out for his professionalism and his ability to adapt to different economic and technical conditions. These qualities were reflected in the variety of housing projects carried out for the middle classes in Paris. The buildings he designed in the XVI. district, combine modern façades with a functional use of small areas for luxury flats and facilities for the general public such as terraces and bicycle storage. A characteristic feature of the architecture created by Ginsberg is the repetition of elements used, such as balconies. In his projects from the inter-war period, such as the housing estates at 25 and 42 Avenue de Versailles, the influence of Le Corbusier's work and his concept of the 'machine for living', according to which construction should assimilate the achievements of the technological industry, is evident. After the Second World War, Ginsberg moved into mass production, relinquishing full supervision of all the projects carried out by his company. In the 1950s and 1960s, Ginsberg repeatedly collaborated with artists such as Wilfredo Arcaya and Victor Vasarely, involving them in the decoration of the common areas and facades of his buildings.

Selected projects

• 1931: 25 avenue de Versailles, with Berthold Lubetkin
• 1933: Hôtel particulier de la Bégassière, rue des Peupliers, Villa Montmorency
• 1934: 42 avenue de Versailles, with Franz Heep
• 1935: 5 avenue Vion-Withcomb, with Franz Heep
• 1935: 8 rue des Pâtures, with Franz Heep
• 1936-1952: 28 rue Chardon-Lagache
• 1946-1948: 11 rue de Lübeck
• 1950-1953: Résidence de la Muette, 19 rue du Docteur-Blanche, with Georges Massé
• 1951-1956: 20 rue de Boulainvilliers / 30 rue du Ranelagh, with Georges Massé
• 1951-1960: 59-65 boulevard Lannes / rue Adolph-Yvon
• 1952: 2 Place Rodin
• 1952: 55 rue des Belles-Feuilles
• 1956-1958: 23 avenue Marceau / 4 rue Bizet
• 1959-1962: 94 rue Chardon-Lagache
• 1960: 54-56 avenue de Versailles / rue Félicien-David, with André Ilinski and Jean Notari
• 1960: 181-185 avenue Victor-Hugo
• 1962: 6-12 rue Raffet, with Georges Goldberg
• 1963-1965: 34 avenue Raphaël
• 1963-1967: 37 rue Michel-Ange / 38 rue Molitor
• 1963-1968: 34 rue Beaujon
• 1964-1967: 86 boulevard Excelmans
• 1967: 37-39 boulevard Murat / 2 rue de Civry
• 1975: 8-10 rue de la Cure, with Eugène Beaudouin