Fondation Victor Lyon

The Fondation Victor Lyon is one of the residential houses of the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris (CIUP), a unique international campus in the south of Paris. It bears the name of Victor Lyon (1878–1963), an international businessman, banker and art collector who fully financed its construction. The building was designed by the architect Lucien Bechmann, who had also designed the neighbouring Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe some twenty-five years earlier, and it was inaugurated on 29 June 1950 in the presence of French President Vincent Auriol, Education Minister Yvon Delbos and Raoul Dautry. Originally conceived as an international centre for short stays, the Fondation Victor Lyon opened with 109 accommodations. Its architecture marked a break with the picturesque, Oxford-inspired style of the Cité's earlier 1920s and 1930s houses: it is a stripped-down, modern-classical four-storey building in red brick with a flat terrace roof. Its festive hall is decorated with a 1950 oil painting by Jean Dries, a French painter and alumnus of the Cité, depicting Mrs Victor Lyon in the grounds of one of her properties. In 2017, as part of the "Cité 2025" development plan, the house was completely reclassified and underwent a major renovation led by architects Paul Ravaux and Suzel Brout for the Régie immobilière de la Ville de Paris. The renovated residence, which now offers 39 accommodations reserved for international researchers, was inaugurated on 31 January 2018. It retains its original concrete structure and stone-and-brick façades, and gained a new auditorium. Today the Fondation Victor Lyon is part of the CIUP network of 43 to 47 houses that together welcome around 12,000 students, researchers and artists of some 150 nationalities each year. The Cité internationale is run by the Fondation nationale Cité internationale universitaire de Paris, a private-law entity recognised as being in the public interest by a decree of 6 June 1925. The house hosts residents of many nationalities, maintains a library, and contributes to the cultural and academic life of the campus.

The Fondation Victor Lyon is one of the residential houses of the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris (CIUP), a campus created in the aftermath of the First World War as a "school of human relations for peace" where French and international students could live together. The Cité internationale was driven by committed public figures, intellectuals and philanthropists, and is run by the Fondation nationale Cité internationale universitaire de Paris, recognised as being in the public interest by a decree of 6 June 1925. The house bears the name of Victor Lyon (1878–1963), an international businessman, banker and art collector who fully financed its construction. The building was designed by Lucien Bechmann, the Cité's consulting architect from 1923 to 1953, who had also designed the adjacent Fondation Deutsch de la Meurthe, inaugurated in 1925, and the Cité's entrance pavilions in 1932. The Fondation Victor Lyon was inaugurated on 29 June 1950 in the presence of President of the Republic Vincent Auriol, Minister of National Education Yvon Delbos and Raoul Dautry. It originally comprised 109 accommodations and was conceived as "an international centre for short stays". Its festive hall is decorated with a 1950 oil painting by the French painter and Cité alumnus Jean Dries, titled Mrs Victor Lyon in the grounds of one of her properties. In the late 1950s, the future American psychologist Stanley Milgram lived in the house while a student. In 2017, the Fondation was reclassified within the framework of the "Cité 2025" development plan. It underwent a major rehabilitation entrusted by the Régie immobilière de la Ville de Paris to the architects Paul Ravaux and Suzel Brout. The renovated residence, now comprising 39 accommodations intended for international researchers, was inaugurated on 31 January 2018. The renovation preserved the original concrete structure and the stone-and-brick façades while completely restructuring the interior surfaces and adding a new auditorium. Architecturally, the Fondation Victor Lyon differs from the earlier, picturesque houses of the Cité built in the 1920s and 1930s in an Oxford-inspired style. It is a four-storey red-brick building in a stripped-down, modern-classical style, with a flat terrace roof characteristic of modern architecture. Today it is part of the CIUP network of houses that welcome around 12,000 students, researchers and artists of some 150 nationalities each year.

• 2018

  Inauguration of the renovated residence on 31 January, now with 39 accommodations for international researchers.

• 2017

  Reclassification of the Fondation within the "Cité 2025" development plan; major renovation begins.

• 1950

  Inauguration of the Fondation Victor Lyon on 29 June in the presence of President Vincent Auriol, with 109 accommodations.

• 1950

  Painting by Jean Dries, Mrs Victor Lyon in the grounds of one of her properties, created for the festive hall.

A historic, modern-classical residence house within the Cité internationale universitaire de Paris, dedicated to international researchers after its 2017–2018 renovation.

• Student and researcher accommodation

  39 accommodations after the 2017–2018 renovation, reserved for international researchers.

• Library

  A library is among the house's facilities.

• Auditorium

  A new auditorium was added during the 2017–2018 renovation.

• Festive hall

  Decorated with a 1950 oil painting by Jean Dries.

1. 1Fondation Victor Lyon - CIUPciup.fr
2. 2The Cité internationale, a century of history | CIUPciup.fr
3. 3Legal disclaimers - CIUPciup.fr
4. 4International campus for students and researchers | CIUPciup.fr
5. 5Fondation Victor Lyon - Wikidatawikidata.org
6. 6Fondation Victor Lyon - Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org