(b Rosheim, 24 June 1940). French architect. He was trained as an architect at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts et Industries in Strasbourg and first worked for the new town of Cergy-Pontoise. There he was responsible for the layout of the Centre Urbain around the Préfecture and was involved in the design of several commercial and public buildings such as the cultural centre and the Hôtel de Ville (1974–9). He opened his own office in 1973 and worked on a number of housing projects in new towns. He also designed the Forum des Halles (1973–9; with Georges Pancreac’h) in the centre of Paris; this is a multi-storey, high-tech, commercial centre, partially below ground level, whose recessed, glazed arcades echo the buttresses of the nearby church of St Eustache. Another major project was his appointment by the Régie Renault to plan for the future development of its long-established industrial site at Boulogne-Billancourt, immediately to the west of Paris. Here Vasconi built the 57 Métal workshop (1981–2) that was reminiscent of some expressionist factories by Hans Poelzig; its powerful massing was based on the rhythm of huge sheds. This building was a remarkable achievement in a country where industrial architecture is underrated, and Vasconi was awarded the Grand Prix National d’Architecture in 1982 as a result. His work in the 1990s included the World Trade Centre Tower (1991–5) for the Euralille development, a cultural centre (1993) in Mulhouse, and a congress centre (1994) in Reims, all modernist compositions in metal and glass.

• Vasconi, Claude
  • Diziani, Gaspare