Lausanne and architecture

A network of layers

BY CLÉMENT CREVOISIER

Architecture in Lausanne is based around slopes and some of their simple or complex derivatives, such as overhangs, layering, terracing, burial, and burrowing.

The sovereign bishops of the medieval city were the first to take hold of the City’s hill. Their palaces, the Ancien Evêché and Saint-Maire, closed off the ends of the hill while their cathedral sat at the top of the city. A climb to the top of the sanctuary, up the spiral stairways dating back eight centuries, is an absolute must. Up there, through curtains of gothic columns, the city is revealed and it is finally possible to see its morphology, its closeness to the lake, and the Alps in the distance.

Vertical aspirations

The Saint-François overhang expressed the booming economy around the year 1900. Banks, large stores and adorned historical monuments dotted the site. People wondered whether to make the antenna at the new post office higher than the steeple of the Franciscan church. In they end they didn’t dare, and thirty years later the Bel-Air tower, with its modernist feel, would finally achieve the vertical dreams of that generation. In the meantime, the addition of monumental bridges structured the city in a network of layers.

Terraces and gentle slopes are used to great effect by “campagnes”, rural estates that have sprinkled the Lausanne area since the 18^th century. The local aristocracy built genteel villas there. The magnificent, well-planned parks surrounding them take full advantage of the opportunities afforded by the countryside, a dream for solitary walkers.

Concealment defines the Flon and the Louve, the rivers that snake beneath the rubble somewhere in the depths of the city. But what is most hidden is Lousonna, the prosperous port city which was able to develop thanks to the peace brought by the Romans. Although there is nothing left of it but foundations, the remnants of this remarkable settlement – port, forum, basilica and church – are the oldest parts of Lausanne’s building heritage. They can be found at Vidy, near the Roman Museum that tells their story.

Architectural experiments

Whilst it was not without precedent, in the shape of the mid-19^th century Barre tunnel, the area below the ground is now a field for architectural experimentation. Environmental needs, urban densification and public mobility came together in several underground sites in the 21^st century. The LEB train pierces the city’s underground from Avenue d’Echallens to the Flon train station. The deconstructivist architect Bernard Tschumi helped to emphasize the complexity of this symbolic site, which has different layers featuring LEB stations and M1 and M2 metro stations, plus the road routes of Place de l’Europe and the Grand-Pont.

There are two proposals for explorers of the city. Climb the tower of the cathedral for the best view starting from the Grand-Pont, or go down to Ouchy on the m2 and enjoy the flatness and the lake. Satisfaction is guaranteed either way.