Marseille is the capital of Provence region, the largest seaport city in France, and plays an important role as the largest gateway in France's foreign trade, which is evident in its political and economic status. In fact, in addition to its identity as a port city, Marseille, as the oldest city in France, is a unique and rich city culture composed of waves of immigrants, and the old port area of Marseille is the best witness of its history. The Old Port has experienced industrial boom and late decline, the city's central position was challenged, but after a series of local design and renovation, the area reached a revival. It can be said that the Old Port of Marseille is a model of urban renewal and a microcosm of the city's image.
The historic Vieux Port, located in the center of Marseille, is the largest port in France. As early as the 7th century B.C., Marseille began to trade in metals, jewelry and other handicrafts in the old port under the occupation of the ancient Greeks, and in the 1620s, the first wharf was built in the old port and factories were constructed around it to take advantage of the port logistics to boost the local economy. By the end of the 18th century, the old port of Marseille became one of the most prestigious ports in the world.
Top view of Marseille's Old Port
In the mid-19th century, due to the lack of capacity of the old port of Marseille, a large number of cargo functions were replaced by the new port. At the same time, as the city expanded, landmarks such as the St. Charles station and the Northwest Port area landed near the old port. By the 20th century, the new city of Marseille was formed as the northwest port area flourished. In contrast, the old port of Marseille and the surrounding urban neighborhoods developed slowly and gradually declined. The Old Port of Marseille, with its dirty environment, chaotic traffic and buildings severely damaged in World War II, was not comparable to the vibrant scene of today.
After a period of glory and decline, the Old Port of Marseille was revived before it fell into obscurity for a long time. Since the middle of the 20th century, the government has been restoring the buildings in the Old Port area and redesigning the city's street spaces. Much of the present dock infrastructure was rebuilt during this period on the ruins of the post-World War II era. The design strategy is based on conservation and moderate development to stimulate the urban vitality of the Old Port area by restoring the urban fabric and upgrading the spatial functions in an attempt to regain its urban center status.
The Panier district, the oldest part of Marseille's old port, is undoubtedly one of the highlights of this urban renewal. The design of its renewal was challenging. For a long time, the Panier district has been restricted to the area defined by the city walls, and construction outside the walls has been prohibited. In addition, due to its own topographical constraints, the Parnell District has developed a steep and long sloping streetscape over the course of its urban development history. These design constraints made the city block characterized by steep and narrow alleyways and dense buildings of 4-5 stories high on both sides. Even after the destruction of the city walls, the Parnell district retained its unique street texture and neighborhood atmosphere. From the 17th century, the Parnell district was a popular place to live, but the spatial development of the district became increasingly overcrowded with housing and poorly maintained buildings, and the neighborhood gradually became isolated and closed.
The Old Port of Marseille
The local government started to improve the spatial quality of the Parnell district by maintaining the physical interface of the open space of the neighborhood and improving the pedestrian friendliness of the streets through new infrastructure such as steps. On the other hand, the original squares, such as Luncheon Square at the bottom of the Parnell district, which is used as a meeting place and market, are used as nodal public spaces to improve the spatial quality based on the restoration of the old.
In addition to the environmental design of the old district of Parnell, the Marseille government has also proposed a design activation strategy for the stores along the street. Today, you can find all kinds of "Made in Marseille" handicraft stores, creative studios and unique concept stores in the pedestrian alley of Parnell, which is the evidence of the introduction of creative class at that time. These creative spaces, together with Marseille's characteristic bistros and restaurants, form a charming literary neighborhood. Likewise, the vacant factory buildings of the old port terminal have been intervened by new commercial functions, adding to the leisure and cultural atmosphere of the old port area.
In addition, in terms of urban identity, the Avenue of the Republic, which connects Marseille's Old Port to the Northwest Port area, has been given due attention. The design respects the urban memory and maintains the grand and beautiful early style of the buildings on both sides, linking the old town and the new town in an urban context and forming a continuous urban cultural landscape.
Centre de la Vieille Charité
The urban renewal from the middle to the end of the 20th century restored the Old Port area to its basic urban architecture, laying a solid foundation for further urban renewal to follow. In 1995, under the auspices of the "Euro-Mediterranean" project, Marseille's waterfront and road transport were redesigned.
The project aimed to make Marseille the center of the Mediterranean region, so the waterfront interface of the Old Port received more attention as a gateway to the city. The design of the neighborhoods of the Old Port creates open public spaces with unobstructed views to the coast; the architecture is carefully designed to integrate its interface with the open spaces of the waterfront; and in the landscape, a continuous walkway connects a series of attractive spaces in the Old Port, where people can move freely and relax. On the other hand, the government strongly believes that a better transportation system is essential for the Old Port, opening several new underground or surface public transportation lines such as subways, trams and buses, and designing rich pedestrian routes using the narrow streets of the Old Port neighborhood; and shifting the freight function of the Old Port to make it more of a passenger port for visitors.
Progressive urban renewal has already led to the rebirth of Marseille's old port at this point, from infrastructure to urban neighborhood space. However, it was a major urban event that gave it a new look and returned it to the center of Marseille, which in 2013 became the "EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF CULTURE". This title was not easy to obtain. The city of Marseille launched its candidacy in March 2004 and in 2006 set up the official association of Marseille Provence 2013 (MP2013), which provided a budget of €101 million to support the city's event seven years later. Along with this major event, the old port of Marseille has been taken up again by the authorities since 2009.
Norman Foster, mirrored ceiling pergola, public space of the Old Port
In this urban renewal with a budget of 45 million euros, the combination of new and old design has led to a magnificent transformation of the old port of Marseille. It has been completely transformed into one of the largest public spaces in Europe. The surrounding vehicular and road traffic has been completely reorganized; the roadways have been further reinforced with sight lines to the sea; the marina and the surrounding shopping streets have been made more tourist-oriented and pedestrianized; and a pergola with a mirrored ceiling designed by architect Norman Foster is the finishing touch to the public space of the Old Port.
In anticipation of this event, many new modern buildings were built in the Old Port area, most notably the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations (MuCEM) and the Mediterranean Villas, located on the J4 quay, recreating the memory and character of the magnificent Mediterranean city with the theme of cultural development. The Museum, the first national museum to open outside of the Paris region, was designed by architect Rudy Ricciotti and overlooks the Mediterranean Sea, while the Villa Mediterranea, which serves as "an international center for Mediterranean dialogue and exchange", was designed by Stefano Boeri, designed in the shape of an inverted "L" with a prominent overhang over the water. In the process of landing the new architectural proposal, the Marseille government strictly controlled its relationship with the urban design of the old port, moderating aspects such as architectural form, so that these modern buildings would coexist in harmony with the Baroque and Byzantine cultural buildings of the old port.
Mediterranean Villa, designed by Stefano Boeri
In addition to top-down urban planning, the creative "design" of places by human action is not to be underestimated, and one of the goals of MP2013 is to integrate art into public spaces. To celebrate the "European Capital of Culture", Marseille hosted more than 400 theatrical, musical, dance, screening and street performances, more than 80 exhibitions, countless sculptures, fireworks, art and light installations, and many creative projects throughout the city over the course of a year. The cultural philosophy and creative spirit of the Mediterranean city was presented to the world in a concentrated manner through the Old Port neighborhood. In addition, street graffiti, rap performances, hanging out at the fish market, Les Artisanales du Vieux-Port ...... all make Marseille's Old Port a decidedly more lived-in area than the modern-looking ports of Nice or Cannes, France, making it the most popular area of the city for walkers. The combination of the two, with design, has contributed to the urban renaissance of Marseille's Old Port.
Article Source:艺术与设计
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