Benoit DECQUE Accueil: THE REOPENNING OF THE PARADISE

. T..H..E....R..E..O..P..E..N..I..N..G....O..F....T..H..E....P..A..R..A..D..I..S..E. The last house “Supposez que l’architecture soit morte, quelle serait la dernière maison?” "DAS LETZTE HAUS" Zonen der Verstörung, Streirischer Herbst 97 “HAUS DER ARCHITEKTUR” - Graz, Östereich.

A very special Garden still exists on our Earth. People call it the "Garden of Eden". Holy Scripture describes it ("Une histoire du paradis", Jean Delumeau, Paris, Fayard, 1992) as an enclosed garden (hortus conclusus) as well as a garden of delights (hortus deliciarum), but Holy Scripture warns us: this garden is defended on its east side by cherubs ("God posted the cherubs at the east of the Garden of Eden with the flame of the terrifying sword."- Genesis, 3, 24). At the same time Holy Scripture tells us: this Garden is leading to Paradise. Architecture is defunct, the "LAST HOUSE" will be an ACTION which will take place in a site composed by: - THE EARTH:

. The Earth is represented by an imperfect and rough Stone (70x30x7cm). (According to Prometheus the stone comes from the sky and raises back to it after transmutation). - THE GARDEN:

. The Garden is represented by a rectangular Carpet (12x28cm). (Middle-East people say a carpet is a significant representation of the Garden of Eden). - THE THREE WALLS:

. Referring to the Holy Scripture, the eastern part of the Garden is a "U"-shaped enclosure and the western part is a field open on Paradise. Three Walls surround this enclosure: the first one on the east side, the second one on the south side and the third one on the north side. These Three Walls are represented by three pieces of Golden Wood (12x2.4x0.8cm). - THE THREE QUARRIES: The material of the Three Walls is quarried from Three rectangular open air Quarries perfectly carved in the Earth. Gold is this material, gold is a perfect material. In the Far East, gold is considered to be anterior to the earth. Byzanthine icons are drawn on a golden background, in order to reflect "celestial light". Boudhist icons are golden, a sign of illlumination and "absolute perfection". In India, one says that gold is considered like "mineral light". These Three Quarries are represented by three rectangular nicks in the Stone (12x2.4x0.8cm) - THE ACTION: We will build the "LAST HOUSE" with the Three Walls surronding the eastern part of the Garden. The boundaries between the Earth and the Garden will disappear. THE REOPENING OF THE PARADISE will be a reality. This ACTION will last seven days. • THE FIRST DAY:

. We will have to discover the site of the Garden of Eden and tame the cherubs.

. • THE SECOND DAY: We will make the eastern wall fall down. This action creates a first weakening of the enclosure but not yet a real opening.

• THE THIRD DAY:

. We will make the Southern Wall turn round the fallen down Eastern Wall. This action creates an opening from the south side and draws the first axis of "THE LAST HOUSE": The NORTH-SOUTH AXIS.

. • THE FOURTH DAY:

. We will make the Northern Wall fall back upon the Three Quarries. This action creates three little overhead rooms in the Three Quarries and draws the second axis of "THE LAST HOUSE": The EAST-WEST AXIS.

. • THE FIFTH DAY:

. We will make the Eastern Wall rise again. This action draws the third and major axis of the "LAST HOUSE": The AXIS which links the EARTH and the SKY. The "LAST HOUSE" will be located at the intersection of these three axis. The initial enclosure will be transformed into an open structure.

. • THE SIXTH DAY:

We will make the Three Quarries fit to live in. This action organizes facilities into the three little overhead rooms. - The first one for cooking. - The second one for eating. - The third one for sleeping. The back-of-house facilities are fitted between this rooms. This suite is leading to the garden. • THE SEVENTH DAY:

We will have to take a rest. We will have to enjoy the Garden. We will have access to Paradise. Then, we will have to ask ourselves: In Paradise do we really need a house?