"The homes built today must escape the idea of a financial product"

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In the field of social housing, the couple formed by Anne Lacaton (Saint-Pardoux, 1955) and Jean-Philippe Vassal (Casablanca, 1954) has been a pioneer in putting people at the center and achieving the maximum benefits with minimal resources. Five years ago they won the Pritzker Prize, the Nobel of architects, for their “democratic spirit” that has managed to “renew” and “revitalize” the legacy of modern architecture. “Their work responds to the climatic and ecological emergencies of our time, as well as to social ones, particularly in the field of urban housing,” the jury said at the time. Two years earlier they had won the Mies van der Rohe Prize for the innovative renovation of 530 apartments from the 1960s in Bordeaux. Before intervening in the UIA congress this Monday, Jean-Philippe Vassal answers questions from ARA in writing.