Elizabeth de Portzamparc: Leading Architects

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Elizabeth de Portzamparc spent her youth there, following the Frank Schaeffer art workshop before coming to France to complete her studies. In France, she completed urban sociology studies (Master's Degree, then DEA, with Paul-Henri Chombart de Lawe), before orientating her professional activities towards town planning in the Paris urban district from 1977 to 1980, and she taught at the Architecture School of Paris-La-Seine between 1982 and 1987. She created her own agency in 1987. Today, among other realisations, major architectural projects have been launched: the iconic railway station of Le Bourget, the Grand Documentary Equipment of Aubervilliers, the Musee de la Romanite in Nimes, and projects for cultural facilities, building for hotels and houses in France, Brazil, Morocco, China and the United States. Through her involvement with the Grand Paris International Workshop, she is pursuing her research on the identity of places, started 30 years ago and playing a key role in the reflection and discussion on the construction of a metropolis. In the same context, she is conducting pioneering proposals for flexible, sustainable housing, for mixed-use or prefabricated.