Boulevard Haussman's Department Store and Boulevard des Capucines's Essay

Boulevard Haussman's Department Store and Boulevard des Capucines's Opera House as two key elements in the Haussmannization of P - Essay Example The boulevard is between Boulevard des Italiens and the Avenue de Friedland and runs a length of 2.5km. The two famous department stores found in the Boulevard Haussmann are the Galeries Lafayette Department store and the Printemps Department store. The two stores are a depiction of state of the art architectural articulation despite the fact that they were built in the late 1800’s1. The Printemps Department Store The Printemps department store will be the main building in focus on the Boulevard Haussmann. The store is an architectural center piece located at the corner of Le Havre and Boulevard Haussmann. The building was officially opened on 3rd November 1865 in its original form. The architects who were responsible for the building of the Printemps departmental store were Jules Jaluzot and Jean-AlfredDuclo. Before joining the Printemps project, Jules Jaluzot was a supervisor at the Le Bon Marche department store. The first store building was small and in 1874, the building was renovated. The main agenda of the renovation was to expand the building. The most notable installation that occurred during the expansion process was the installation of elevators. This was a major architectural innovation and installation since elevators were unveiled during the 1867 universal exposition2. In 1881, the Printemps store, despite all the renovations and innovative installations, burnt down. The building was left desolate for a couple of years until the reconstruction process began and was completed in 1889. The newly reconstructed Au Printemps covered an area of over 3000 square meters and stretched from the Rue Caumartin and Rue de Provence. The reconstruction of the building also made history. This is because the Au Printemps used electric lighting. This was in the year 1888 and was the first building in Paris to use electric lighting. The store was farther enlarged in 1907 and a new shop was built increasing the area of coverage of the Au Printemps to 5000 squa re meters. This new shop covered the space that was between the Boulevard Haussmann, the Rue de Charras, Rue de Provence and Rue Caumartin3. The architectural plan of the store and the Boulevard Haussmann was monumental in that it helped the department store get direct access to the subway after the metro was connected around the year 1904. In 1921, the Au Printemps suffered a major set-back; it experienced another fire and burnt down. Reconstruction began immediately and by the year 1924, the reconstruction of the building was complete. This reconstruction process invoked architectural tactics from ancient Rome and saw the incorporation of a cupola above the main restaurant; this cupola was both historical and architectural monument. In the late 1930’s, the World War II posed threats because of the bombings and for this reason, the cupola was dismantled and stored at Clichy for fear of destruction. The designer of the cupola had archived plans for installing the cupola since it was a family business and it was re-installed in 1973 by his grandson4. Boulevard des Capucines’ Opera’s House Among the four Grands Boulevards in Paris is the Boulevard des Capucines. Before the French revolution, a convent of Capuchin nuns had a garden in the south side of the boulevard. The boulevard was named in relation to the Capuchin nuns. Palais Garnier Opera House