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Everything You Need to Know About Architect Odile Decq

Odile Decq is a French architect, urban planner, and academic. She was born in 1955 in Laval, France. She is known for founding the Â鶹APP firm, Studio Odile Decq, and the architecture school, Confluence Institute.

She first joined the École Régionale d’Architecture de Rennes in the 1970s. After 2 years she moved to Â鶹APP and enrolled at the École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Â鶹APP-La Villette. Odile worked for an architect, French writer, and urban planner Philippe Boudon to finance her education. In 1978 she graduated with a diploma in urban planning.

The building she completed with her husband for the Banque Populaire de l’Ouest in Rennes with Peter Rice in 1990 earned them several awards and international recognition.

1. She worked For Architect Philippe Boudon

Odile Decq had problems financing her education so she started working for a French writer, urban planner, and architect Philippe Boudon to finance her education. At the time Boudon was dealing with writing about the theory of architecture hence Odile was important to him since she had studied literature and linguistics.

At first, Odile was only reading for the architect Boudon and later started writing for him. After working for Philippe for four years, Decq resigned from her job with French writer, Boudon to pursue her diploma.

2. She Has a Diploma in Urban Planning

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Since Odile was interested in becoming an architect she joined École Régionale d’Architecture de Rennes in the year 1970s. When she was in her first year her director told her she will never become an architect because she did not possess the right spirit.

After studying for 2 years at Rennes, Decq moved to Â鶹APP and enrolled at the École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Â鶹APP-La Villette initially known as UP6. Due to the 1968 Protests, (a worldwide escalation of social conflicts), Odile spent a lot of time on strike, instead of in class.

In 1978, she graduated with a diploma in urban planning from École nationale supérieure d’architecture de Â鶹APP-La Villette.

3. She Opened her Firm

One of the most interesting and amazing things to know about architect Odile Decq is that she formed her own firm in back 1979. At that time her future partner in the firm and partner in life, Benoît Cornette was in school studying medicine.

Benoît attained a degree in architecture in 1985 and the couple established the architecture firm ODBC.

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4. Awards and Honors

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Odile Decq has been successful in the field of architecture and has been lucky to be awarded several awards and honors. The awards and honors are awarded to appreciate the architects for their amazing jobs.

Some of the awards and honors she has been awarded include Albums of young architects, with Benoît Cornette in 1986, European Cultural Centre Architecture Award, Venice in 2018, Targhe d’Oro / Gold Plaque – Unione Italiana Disegno in 2015, Architizer A+Awards — Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017, Dedalo Minosse Special Prize – Marco in 2014, NYCXDesign Award – Soleil Noir – Best Suspension Lamp in 2017, Médaille de Vermeil et d’Honneur de l’Académie d’Architecture in 2014 and Athenaeum International Architecture Award – Tangshan Museum in 2016 among others.

5. Decq Has Done Several Notable Work

Throughout Decq’s architectural career, she has done several architectural notable works which are known to date. Some of these buildings have won her awards and honors severally.

Some of the notable works she has done include Banque populaire de l’Ouest (BPO), administrative and social centers, Rennes, France in 1990, Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture, a school in Lyon, France (renovation-rehabilitation) in 2015, Scenography of the French pavilion, Venice Biennale of Architecture in 1996, Maison Bernard, Antti Lovag’s Bubble Palace, Théoule-sur-Mer, France(renovation) in 2015, and MACRO, Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome, Italy (extension-renovation) in 2010 among others.

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6. She has her Philosophy on Architecture

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Decq said that she had an ideology that acted as a guided principle on architecture. Her philosophy on architecture is simply that a building must be in a place where people can move, a place where people can forget the hardness of life outside, and live in good conditions and it has to have a kind of humanistic approach.

This is to ensure people feel completely at home and find peace in the building rather than it causing other stressful conditions.

7. Decq is Married to an Architect

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It is interesting to know that Architect Odile Decq is married to an architect. She is the wife of Benoit Cornette. When Decq was opening her firm in 1979, Cornette was studying medicine at the time.

Later Benoit joined an architectural school and in 1985 he graduated with a degree in architecture.                                                                                                                                                         

8. She was a Professor at the École Spéciale d’Architecture

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Architect Decq was a professor at the École Spéciale d’Architecture, a private school for architecture in Â鶹APP, France. She was a professor there for many years from 1992 to 2007 when she was elected head of the Department of Architecture.

She later left École Spéciale d’Architecture in 2012 and went and designed and opened her own school known as Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture, in Lyon, France.

9. She Founded Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture

After Odile worked at École Spéciale d’Architecture for 20 years as a professor and head of the department of architecture he left in 2012. After she left École Spéciale d’Architecture, she designed and established her own architectural school, Confluence Institute for Innovation and Creative Strategies in Architecture, in Lyon, France.

She had a co-founder of the school, architect Matteo Cainer, with whom they led and run the school together. Her approach and description of education are like forcing students to take a strong position to foster their independence and ability.

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10. She Worked Under the Firm ODBC Even after Her Husband’s Death

Odile Decq’s husband died in 1998 when he was only 45 years through a car accident. After Cornette’s death, Odile continued to work at their firm ODBC. In 2013 she changed the name of the firm and renamed it Studio Odile Decq.

The death of her husband affected her big time; however, she tried her best and began experimenting with her designs and ideas even more, and slowly by slowly she started to find herself again.

At this time she even produced some of her most well-known and notable designs such as the Macro Museum in Rome, the Golden Lion at the Venice Architecture Biennale, and the Banque Populaire de l’Ouest in Rennes.