In the late 1950s in France, the democratisation of leisure and the boom of mass tourism inspire new practices for holiday housing to architects. In the 1960s, the collaboration between architect Henri Mouette and sculptor Pierre Székély is typical of these both functional and aesthetic researches.

In this 160th issue (February-March 1972), L’Architecture d’Aujourd’hui highlights this exemplary collaboration in a report dedicated to « Researches », which presents “Renouveau” (“Renewal”), the holiday village built in Beg-Meil (Brittany, France) between 1964 and 1966. In this article, the author focuses on the constructive principles of the complex. The dwellings are made from a standard cell, fostering prefabrication. On the façade, sprayed concrete technique is used to allow curved shapes.

Since 2006, the “Renewal” village has been labelled “Twentieth-century heritage”, and is still a symbol of innovative seaside architecture, as shown in this 1972 article.

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