‘Wilmotte feels like architecture is a way of organising light.’ Such are the musings that appear in an epic new tome of works by the Parisian architect, Jean-Michel Wilmotte. As one can imagine, a career that spans 40 years makes a meaty book; but this is a worthwhile publication – a photographic journey spanning museums, stadiums, towers and more.
Delineating by types of building, editor José Alvarez has created an in-depth encyclopaedia of Wilmotte's projects, showing off a diverse oeuvre; where his museography for the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam boasts striking graphic lines, the skirt of wood wrapped around the entrance of the École de Formation des Barreaux de Paris in Issy-les-Moulineaux evokes femininity.
With a practice that has over 200 employees, the mastery of Wilmotte's success is often shared; ‘When he begins a new project, he does so without preconceived ideas, without recipes, yet armed with axioms built not only on experience but an almost entomological sense of observation,’ the book's text states. This wisdom is applied far and wide, from the oxidised copper of the Seoul Auction House, built in 1999, to the renovated boathouse in Venice that Wilmotte restored into his own foundation gallery.
The pages observe the decades of work via interesting perspectives, zooming in where details of the buildings become patterns, or shooting their silhouettes in the shadows of the city in which they are built. Alvarez closes with a timeline of JM Wilmotte's accomplishments that looks to the future, featuring speculative plans for 2016–2020.
Chaptered by building type, editor José Alvarez creates an in-depth encyclopaedia that effectively shows off the practice's 40-year history. Pictured: Château Pédesclaux winery.
The tome exists as a photographic journey through Wilmotte's museums, stadiums, towers and more
'When he begins a new project, he does so without preconceived ideas, without recipes, yet armed with axioms built not only on experience but an almost entomological sense of observation,’ explains Alvarez in the book's text. Pictured: EFB Lawyer School.
Richaud (formerly Royal) Hospital, Versailles.
The pages observe his decades of work with interesting perspectives, zooming in where details of the buildings become patterns. Pictured: the detail of a ceiling in a private home; 'I like to work with shadow gaps,' explains Wilmotte
In contrast to the details, the building's silhouettes are sometimes shown shot in the shadows of city in which they are built. Pictured: private home in Flaysoc, 2005
Russian Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Centre, Paris, 2016.
Plans for Wilmotte's Allianz Riviera stadium, Nice, 2013
INFORMATION
Wilmotte, by José Alvarez, €69, by Editions du Regard. For more information, visit the publisher’s website
-
Put these emerging artists on your radarThis crop of six new talents is poised to shake up the art world. Get to know them now
-
Dining at Pyrá feels like a Mediterranean kiss on both cheeksDesigned by House of Dré, this Lonsdale Road addition dishes up an enticing fusion of Greek and Spanish cooking
-
Creased, crumpled: S/S 2025 menswear is about clothes that have ‘lived a life’The S/S 2025 menswear collections see designers embrace the creased and the crumpled, conjuring a mood of laidback languor that ran through the season – captured here by photographer Steve Harnacke and stylist Nicola Neri for Wallpaper*
-
Stay in a Parisian apartment which artfully balances minimalism and warmthTour this pied-a-terre in the 7th arrondissement, designed by Valeriane Lazard
-
Marta Pan and André Wogenscky's legacy is alive through their modernist home in FranceFondation Marta Pan – André Wogenscky: how a creative couple’s sculptural masterpiece in France keeps its authors’ legacy alive
-
The museum of the future: how architects are redefining cultural landmarksWhat does the museum of the future look like? As art evolves, so do the spaces that house it – pushing architects to rethink form and function
-
Ten contemporary homes that are pushing the boundaries of architectureA new book detailing 59 visually intriguing and technologically impressive contemporary houses shines a light on how architecture is evolving
-
Take a deep dive into The Palm Springs School ahead of the region’s Modernism WeekNew book ‘The Palm Springs School: Desert Modernism 1934-1975’ is the ultimate guide to exploring the midcentury gems of California, during Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025 and beyond
-
Meet Minnette de Silva, the trailblazing Sri Lankan modernist architectSri Lankan architect Minnette de Silva is celebrated in a new book by author Anooradha Iyer Siddiq, who looks into the modernist's work at the intersection of ecology, heritage and craftsmanship
-
Paris’ architecturally fascinating Villejuif-Gustave Roussy metro station is now openVillejuif-Gustave Roussy is part of the new Grand Paris Express, a transport network that will raise the architectural profile of the Paris suburbs
-
Explore wood architecture, Paris' new timber tower and how to make sustainable construction look ‘iconic’A new timber tower brings wood architecture into sharp focus in Paris and highlights ways to craft buildings that are both sustainable and look great: we spoke to project architects LAN, and explore the genre through further examples
