Auguste Perret

Auguste Perret
Auguste Perret in 1921
Born	(1874-10-06)October 6, 1874 Ixelles, Belgium
Died	February 25, 1954(1954-02-25) (aged 80) Paris, France
Nationality	French
Occupation	Architect
Awards	AIA Gold Medal (1952)
Buildings	Théâtre des Champs-Élysées St. Joseph's Church, Le Havre French Economic, Social and Environmental Council Église Notre-Dame du Raincy

Auguste Perret (12 February 1874 – 25 February 1954) was a French architect and entrepreneur who worked in collaboration with his two younger brothers, Claude and Gustave Perret. He was one of the pioneers of the architectural use of reinforced concrete, and built the first residential buildings with that material. His other major works included the Théatre des Champs-Élysées, the first Art Deco building in Paris. His other important works include the The Church of Notre-Dame du Raincy (1922–23); the Mobilier Nationale in Paris (1937); and the French Economic, Social and Environmental Council building in Paris (1937–39). After World War II he designed a group of buildings in the centre of the port city of Le Havre, which had been almost entirely destroyed during the war. In 2005, his post-World War II reconstruction of that city was declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site.

Auguste Perret was born in Ixelles, Belgium, where his father, a stone mason, had taken refuge after the Paris Commune. He received his early education in architecture in the family firm. He was accepted in the architecture course of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, along with his two brothers, Gustave (1876-1952) and Claude (1880-1960). where he studied under Julien Guadet, a Beaux Arts neoclassicist who had collaborated with Charles Garnier on the construction of the Paris Opera. Beyond the neoclassical rationalism he learned from Gaudet, Perret's particular interest was the structure of buildings and the use of new materials, such as concrete. Though he was considered a brilliant student, he left School without obtaining a diploma and went to work for the family firm.