michel marot

Born in Troyes in 1926, Michel Marot graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in 1950. The following year, thanks to a Fulbright scholarship, he attended the City Planning workshop at Harvard (USA), where he discovered the works of Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, as well as those of Eero Saarinen, Louis Kahn, and Frank Lloyd Wright. Upon his return in 1954, he won the Prix de Rome for his project “A Center for African Research in Kano, in British Nigeria.” He stayed at the Villa Medici from January 1955 to April 1958.

In 1956, he designed the Church of Sainte-Agnès in Fontaine-les-Grès, for which he received the Équerre d’Argentaward in 1963.

In 1959, he co-founded the MTA firm with his associate Daniel Tremblot. They were later joined by Jean-Louis Nouvian, Didier Quillard, Maurice Guerlain, Pierre Blain, and Georges Fidon, who played a significant role in the design of the Villa Arson.

In 1960, Michel Marot was appointed Chief Architect of Civil Buildings and National Palaces, responsible for the Alpes-Maritimes and Corsica regions. Later in this role, he would oversee major landmarks such as the Arc de Triompheand the National Archives.

In 1964, Max Querrien, Director of Architecture at the Ministry of Cultural Affairs (1963–1968), entrusted him with the design of the Villa Arson. Inaugurated in 1972, it remains one of Michel Marot’s most significant works. Recognized in 2003 with the “Remarkable Contemporary Architecture” label, the Villa Arson serves as a space of crystallization, echoing the encounters and inspirations drawn from the experiences that shaped his architectural training.

As an institution of a new kind, the Villa Arson was among the last major projects tied to André Malraux’s policy of cultural decentralization. Bringing together on a single site an art school, an exhibition center dedicated to experimentation, and internationally oriented residences, this new “artistic campus” was intended to rival the major art schools in Paris.

To meet the ambitious construction brief, Michel Marot designed a project that occupies nearly the entire site. The modern concrete buildings, covered in pebbles, nestle within the boundaries defined by large trees (stone pines and cypresses) planted during the Arson family era. The historic building is surrounded by terraced levels inspired by Italian gardens from the former estate, leading to two outdoor auditoriums facing the sea. Reminiscent of Mediterranean hilltop villages, the architecture plays with light, blurs the line between inside and outside, contrasts mineral and plant elements, and connects studios and classrooms through a labyrinthine path.

Always generous in responding to the needs of the Villa Arson teams, Michel Marot remained attentive to the evolution of the building, maintaining a close relationship with it throughout his life.

Michel Marot also collaborated with André Minangoy and Jean Marchand on the creation of Marina Baie des Anges in Villeneuve-Loubet (1969–1993).

Alongside his architectural career, he was also a deeply committed and engaged teacher. Beginning in 1965, he became a studio head at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. After the creation of the Architectural Teaching Units (UPAs), he taught until 1995 at UP4 (the Paris-Conflans School of Architecture, which was integrated in 2001 into the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Paris-Val de Seine).