A Major University and Urban Development Project
The École de Nancy celebrated its centenary in 1999; it was the organisation that originally
brought art and industry together. The same year three of Nancy’s elite university colleges,
the École Nationale Supérieure d’Art, the École des Mines and ICN Management School,
decided to form an alliance similar to that which created Art Nouveau, i.e. break down
barriers between cultures and disciplines, bring science, art and management together and
create a new type of university. This is the aim of a highly innovatory project called ARTEM,
standing for Art, Technology and Management. Greater Nancy’s local authorities and
universities joined forces to have the project included in the year 2000 Plan-Contract between
the French government and the Regional Council. In 2001 four government Ministries,
National Education, Higher Education and Research, Culture and Industry, approved the
project on the grounds of its innovatory nature and potential contribution. The three colleges
have since encouraged their students to set up joint structures and activities; in 2005, a major
Town Planning and Architectural Competition was launched. Other important local schools
joined the Project: the Jean Lamour Institute, a research centre specialising in materials, the
Institute for Business Administration and the University of Trades (apprenticeships).
ARTEM, which will doubtless play a very important international role, is a vast, 25-acre town
planning and architectural project for the redevelopment of the site of the former Molitor and
Manutention barracks in the centre of Greater Nancy.
Aerial view of the district, 2005 © Imatec
© ENSMN
ARTEM, the Alliance…
There is clearly a need for a radically new type of education and training to meet the new
century’s economic and social challenges: this was the objective that led three elite university
colleges in Greater Nancy, the École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Nancy (EMN), the
École Nationale Supérieure d’Art de Nancy (ENSA) and ICN-Management School Group, to
form a strategic partnership called ARTEM in 1999. The three colleges, with active support
from the local authorities, had a common aim: to break down traditional boundaries, unite
people (artists, engineers and businessmen and women), disciplines (art, science, technology
and management), and professional know-how (creation, production, valorisation and
negotiation) in order to transform and enhance their existing research and educational
methods and better train the new generation of creators and decision-makers.
The Ecole des Mines, (National Mining School) has strong links with business and industry
Originally called the Metallurgical and Mining Institute when it was founded in 1919, it
became the École Nationale Supérieure des Mines in 1947. Today it is part of Lorraine
National Polytechnic. It has always worked closely with industry, training engineers in many
disciplines, in particular production and product design engineering.
Given the rapid evolution in various trades and technologies, it progressively broadened its
scope to include major disciplines such as materials engineering and research, earth sciences,
the environment and risk management, energy, process engineering, industrial engineering,
computer science, engineering mathematics… Today it has eight laboratories and research
teams with a total staff of more than 350.
One of the founders of ARTEM, the École des Mines gives top priority to developing the
international side of its training by collaborating with famous non-French universities and
colleges and building partnerships with companies all over the world.
www.mines.inpl-nancy.fr
ICN, one of France’s top management schools
Founded by Nancy University and Meurthe-et-Moselle CCI in 1905, Nancy Commercial
Institute became the ICN School of Management Group in 2002. A top French management
school, it is a private, higher education establishment attached to Nancy 2 University.
Providing both a university education and professional training, ICN at present has 2,000
students, tomorrow’s leaders, on its various theoretical and practical courses and on incompany training. They include managers from the most important sectors of the economy:
banking and insurance, audit and appraisal, agrofood, industry, consultancy, distribution…
Deeply involved in research in new management skills, ICN collaborates closely with a
number of internationally reputed universities and schools and has over a hundred
partnerships with universities all over the world. At present more than 200 non-French
students are studying at ICN in Nancy.
www.icn-nancy.com
© ENSMN
© ICN
...three elite university colleges
The history of the École Nationale Supérieure d’Art is closely linked to that of Nancy
Deeply involved in Nancy’s artistic, economic and cultural history, ENSA (École Nationale
Supérieure d’Art de Nancy), which adopted its present form in the late 19thC, was one of the
prime movers in the development of the École de Nancy. One of the key personalities in the
movement, Victor Prouvé, was rector during the inter-war period. Now a higher education
institute recognised by the Ministry of Culture and Communications, ENSA offers courses in
a wide range of visual and plastic arts, design and communications leading to nationally
recognised degrees: the Diplôme National d’Arts Plastiques and the Diplôme National
Supérieur d’Expression Plastique.
In addition to the key role it plays in ARTEM, the School has close links with various artistic
and cultural bodies such as the Fine Arts Museum and the Nancy School of Architecture.
www.ensa-nancy.fr
Since 2000, ARTEM’s philosophy has been put into practice, as can be seen in the shared
courses forming part of the curricula at several schools and in the annual Research and
Creation Workshops that attract some 600 students from the three main colleges. Veritable
production sites on which new research and experimental problems are analysed and
developed, these workshops cover a range of subjects (sustainable development, interactive
media, conception and design…) that have direct business and commercial applications.
ARTEM’s RCD (Research, Creation and Development) activities have resulted in the
introduction of major new programs in three main subject areas: Creativity, Innovation and
Design / Risk Management, Sustainability of Works and Territories / Interactive Media
ARTEM today
ARTEM and its enterprises
According to Michel Mathieu, the Association’s Chairman, and MD of CERP Lorraine, the
company members of the ARTEM Enterprises Association actively support the innovatory
concept, “A new model of training to meet evolving needs”.
Having actively supported the first ARTEM Enterprises Workshop, the business world will
make a more important contribution in the next phase with business leaders playing a greater
part by sharing their experience.
Members of ARTEM Enterprises
BANQUE POPULAIRE DE LORRAINE-CHAMPAGNE, BNP PARIBAS, BONGRAINGÉRARD, CABINET TURKA, CERP LORRAINE, CHEVRY & ASSOCIÉS, CIRMAD
EST, CLARION EUROPE SAS, CORA HOUDEMONT, DALKIA EST, DIALOG GUYOT
SA, DUPONT MEDICAL, EDF, EXPERTIS-CFE, FRANCE LANORD ET BICHATON,
FRANCE TELECOM, GAN, GAZ DE FRANCE, GOUVY, HSBC, KPMG, LAGARDE ET
MEREGNANI, LA LIBERTE DE L’EST, LYONNAISE DES EAUX, NOREMAT, ORIENT
COMMUNICATION, PERTUY CONSTRUCTION, SAINT-GOBAIN P-A-M, SNVB,
SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE.
ARTEM plus...
Three more organisations have since joined ARTEM: Institut Jean Lamour, Institut
d’Administration des Entreprises (Business Administration) and the Université des Métiers et
de l’Artisanat (Trades apprenticeships).
Institut Jean Lamour has an excellent reputation in materials and nanotechnologies.
Given its two science universities, the Institut National Polytechnique de Lorraine and Henri
Poincaré University and the CNRS, Nancy has acquired a fine international reputation in
materials. At present approximately 450 researchers spread over five laboratories on two
campuses are working in three major areas: metallurgy, the physics and chemistry of
functional materials and nanosciences (the study of phenomena observed in extremely small
structures and systems). Bringing these skills together on the future campus will transform
Nancy into one of the finest centres for materials in Europe. The combined unit will have a
mixed research CNRS-University status. An active participant in two Lorraine
Competitiveness Clusters, MIPI (Innovatory Materials – Intelligent Products) and FIBRES,
the unit will also seek to apply pure research to commercial ends in partnership with Lorraine
SMEs.
Anne-Marie.Airault@mines.inpl-nancy.fr
The Institut d’Administration des Entreprises (IAE): a wide range of training
The Nancy IAE (Company Administration Institute) is Nancy 2 University’s training and
R&D centre in management and management sciences). It is one of 28 units comprising the
national IAE network. It runs a number of courses in marketing, human resources, finance,
design quality…, specifically for public and private organisations and enterprises
The further education and E-training courses are designed for students with at least a two-year
post school diploma, in particular company directors and staff. It carries out considerable
research and is the site of Lorraine’s only management and financial research laboratory,
CEREFIGE, (in conjunction with Metz IAE). IAE also has a number of international
cooperation agreements enabling students and staff to study and gain experience abroad
(under the Leonardo, Socrates and Erasmus programs). In collaboration with non-French
universities it has also set up a number of joint degree courses.
www.univ-nancy2.fr/IAE
Université des Métiers et de l’Artisanat: Apprenticeship: another way of learning
An apprenticeship training centre run by the Meurthe-et-Moselle Guild Chamber will be
established on the same site. It is being built by Lorraine Regional Council. The building will
be next to ARTEM and will meet the highest Environmental Quality Standards. It will offer
apprenticeships in various trades: in the food industry (bakers and pastry-makers, chocolatemakers and confectioners, butchers and pork butchers), hairdressers, beauticians, dental
mechanics… thus training tomorrow’s craftsmen and women who will have another way of
continuing their studies.
© IJL
© ICN
© Meurthe-et-Moselle Guild Chamber
Who does what?
ARTEM has a number of local and national partners: for example...
Financial backers
The operation is part of the French National-Regional Plan. The main financial partners in the
region are Lorraine Regional Council, Meurthe-et-Moselle County Council and Greater
Nancy Urban District Council. The French national government is participating through the
Ministries for National Education, Higher Education and Research, Culture and Industry.
Partners
Nancy-Metz Educational Authority has been co-ordinating the preparation of the educational
and scientific programs. The various universities and schools have also contributed to
designing the courses and launching the operation, in particular ensuring they are allocated
enough space for their proposed educational activities. ADUAN (Nancy Urban Area Town
Planning and Development Agency) carried out the preliminary studies. EPFL (Lorraine
Public Land-holding Establishment) is demolishing and clearing the site and will be in charge
of site security. Finally, Solorem (Lorraine Public-Private Development Company) has been
instructed by Greater Nancy Urban Council to organise the redevelopment of both the site and
the surrounding district and ensure work starts on time. It will also handle communications
for the project.
Contracting Authority
The French Government has appointed Greater Nancy Urban District Council as Contracting
Authority. It will define the overall aims and operating objectives, raise the financial backing
required and organise competitions for the selection of the architects and works engineers. It
will also manage the project and related communications throughout the different phases.
The Architects
The Architects will be responsible for the architectural design of the project and the related
town planning. In cooperation with the Contracting Authority they will select the contractors
and manage the work site in collaboration with the design office. The International
Competition for the selection of the architect was won by Nicolas Michelin and Partners who
have been appointed architects for the operation as a whole and for the first phase of
construction. Further competitions will be held for the selection of the architects for the
subsequent phases.
Public meetings were held to consult the people living in the area and take into account their
opinions in preparing the project; they will be kept in the picture during the works.
© Greater Nancy Urban District Council
A new urban area
Around 2011-2012, the site of the former Molitor and Manutention barracks will be
transformed into a new 25-acre urban area fully integrated into the Haussonville-BlandanDonop district. The contract has been awarded to Nicolas Michelin and Partners, winners of
the international competition for the redevelopment of the site and the construction of the
National Mining School and Jean Lamour Institute. Architecturally it is a daring, highly
innovatory project which nevertheless complements the old city. The proposed long shopping
mall gives an excellent idea of the importance ARTEM attaches to ensuring the new
development is accessible and becomes an integral part of the district.
The ARTEM Mall, a new type of public area
Created by doubling the width of Rue du Sergent Blandan and designed on the lines of the
other major public squares in Nancy: Place Stanislas, Place Carrière and Cours Léopold, the
shopping mall will be an exceptionally important urban feature, a new kind of public area
forming a strong link between Saint Mary’s Park in the north and Place de Padoue in the
south. Bright and airy, it will be a key urban feature, marking the boundary of a highly
original district divided into blocks. Each block will have its own school directly accessing
the mall. They will be grouped in pairs with landscaped garden-squares shared by each couple
of schools, as will the courtyard-gardens between the blocks. While giving the appearance of
being part of the mall, the schools will be in “marker-buildings” in remarkable contemporary
design but on the same scale as the houses surrounding them. Common areas: premises for
associations, a café, a house of languages, a cluster of amphitheatres or art galleries, plus
shops and services, will be provided all along the shopping mall creating a special, lively,
ever-changing atmosphere. A new district will thus be created with its own schools, buildings
and gardens. To the south, Place de Padoue will become a vast piazza giving access to the
campus which is incorporated into the mall. The piazza will form the heart of a new urban
village…
A vast international university project, ARTEM will also be a key part of a new urban layout
in the heart of Greater Nancy.
Above: Greater Nancy’s main town planning projects
Below: © ANMA / 2006
Echoes of the École de Nancy spirit
In many ways, Nicolas Michelin’s project appears to be inspired by the École de Nancy spirit:
his highly original structures combining a variety of techniques and materials such as steel,
glass…, a range of shapes inspired by plants and trees, such as the palm-like pillars with three
or five fronds, the island gardens all along the mall, and numerous other plants and shrubs. To
meet sustainable development criteria various urban facilities have been designed to
economise the consumption of energy by using earth-cooling tubes and solar panels, to
recuperate rain water, to make use of natural ventilation… Similar principles will be applied
in the construction of the École Nationale Supérieure d’Art, IAE, Institut Jean Lamour... for
which calls for tenders will be published in the next few months.
Nicolas Michelin – an international reputation
Nicolas Michelin, architect and town planner, awarded the Town Planning Grand Prix for
2005, formed the ANMA Agency in Paris in 2000 with Michel Delplace and Cyril Trétout.
Having renovated the Halle aux Farines (Flour Market) for Paris VII University, he is now
working on a number of projects: housing on the Île de Nantes, the Rouen Water-Board’s
head office, Charles de Gaulle Esplanade in Rennes and the Grand Large District in Dunkirk.
He is also in charge of urban studies in Lille, Mulhouse, Metz and Rouen and has been invited
to participate in major town planning competitions in China. In addition to these professional
activities, he was Rector of the Rueil-Malmaison School of Art from 1985 to 2000 and is now
Rector of the Versailles École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture.
A district that grew up with the 20thC
Marked by the army
In the 19thC, what is now the Blandan-Haussonville district was still covered in fields, crossed
by narrow roads linking Nancy to nearby villages. In 1871, following France’s defeat, the
Treaty of Frankfurt transferred Alsace and part of Lorraine to Germany. Nancy thus became
the largest town in north-eastern France as well as a border town.
Little building had taken place in Blandan-Haussonville prior to the middle of the 19thC, but
the area grew fast from 1884 to 1909 with the construction of a vast complex of barracks.
Fifteen forts were built to defend Nancy as well as numerous barracks in which some 13,000
soldiers were billeted by the eve of the First World War. In 25 years a vast network of
military constructions had spread throughout the area: Landremont in 1884, Blandan in 1895,
Molitor in 1906, the military hospital between 1901 and 1909.
Rapid urban growth
These new constructions led to the rapid urbanisation of the area: new streets and houses
replaced the market gardens, the Grand Chemin de Saint-Charles, linking Rue de Villers to
the road to Neufchâteau, was widened in 1885 and was renamed Rue Blandan in memory of
Hippolyte Blandan, a sergeant in Nancy’s 26th Infantry Regiment, killed in Algeria in 1842.
Enterprises, tradesmen and shopkeepers moved in: Moser, the locksmith, the large Garage
Citroën, Jean Prouvé’s first workshop, cabinet-makers, shoemakers, a tailor, a photographer, a
coffee-roaster… As the new century advanced, a variety of artistic, cultural and leisure
activities found their place in the area: Nancy Thermal Baths, the École de Nancy Museum,
Saint Mary’s Park with its remarkable plants and trees, opened to the public in 1904, and the
Ciné-Park where generations of Nancians saw their first films… So many activities attracted
by the sound of the bugle and soldiers on the march, bringing life to the new district. Today,
with the construction of a vast new campus on the site of the now disaffected barracks, the
hundred-year old district is writing a new page in its history.
Temporary accommodation built during the construction of the Molitor Barracks, circa 1906
© Nancy Municipal Archives
Molitor Barracks, circa 1915 © Private Collection
Above: The wheat-field in front of the military hospital, 1915-1916, now the site of the
Louison Bobet Swimming Pool - © Lorraine History Museum
Facing page: Cover of a 1910 brochure advertising the Magasins Vaxélaire - © Lorraine
History Museum
A campus open to the city
The shopping mall’s emblematic architecture shows clearly that the project is intended to
attract everyone in the surrounding area. The garden islands, the mall with its shops and
services are open to everyone, students and local inhabitants alike. The gardens at the heart of
each block, their courtyards lined with maples, oaks and pine-trees, will create superb little
“squares” where everyone can relax or play. To the south, Place de Padoue marks the
entrance to the development and creates a friendly, animated centre for the new ‘village’.
ARTEM is providing a range of sporting, leisure and cultural facilities such as the open-air
amphitheatre, the School of Art’s art gallery… with something for everyone. The inhabitants
have been closely consulted throughout the project, particularly on how the facilities will be
used, and kept in the picture regularly at café-meetings with representatives from the ARTEM
colleges, at meetings in the Haussonville-Blandan-Donop District Hall and at the regularly
updated exhibition.
While specifically created by the university, ARTEM has kept in close contact with the
people in the area and is providing them with gardens, and sports, leisure and cultural
facilities.
© ANMA / 2006