TATLIN NEWS #45

plication of the basic plane: as if a flat sheet of paper was cut and then extended in three dimensions. The French liked the idea and took advantage of it, having fused the lines and having offered a smooth transition from the bottom level to the top one by means of a complex system of ramps. And then, using a system approach, PERIPHERIQUES counter- balanced the smooth lines with a complicat- ed broken rhythm of stairway flights, which at different angles cross the atrium. Actually, here the stairways are not merely the elements of decor, but a well thought-out detail, which gives an opportunity to create an orbital circu- lation. The escalators are supported by the ex- ternal columns and the complexity of the ceil- ing structures adds a certain potential expres- siveness to the volumes. This seems to group all the movements inside the building. Moreo- ver, the escalators and the metal mesh, which «faces» the atrium, create a specific «aerial» opposition to the local colors of the concrete walls. The same opposition is continued on the building’s elevations, which being com- pletely glazed initially, now are also covered

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