Castel Béranger, Art Nouveau apartment building in the 16th arrondissement, Paris, France
Castel Béranger is a six-storey Art Nouveau apartment building at 14 rue Jean-de-La-Fontaine, made of two parallel blocks linked by a narrow wing around a long courtyard. Its asymmetric street facade mixes light stone, red and glazed brick, meulière and flamed stoneware, with turquoise ironwork, seahorse-shaped tie anchors and a small square loggia on the fifth floor. The main portal combines polished copper plates and turquoise wrought-iron arabesques.
The building was completed in 1898 and won the first prize for the most beautiful facade of Paris that year. It marked the first major architectural project by Hector Guimard and helped introduce the new building style across the city.
The building displays natural forms and organic patterns throughout its design, showing how Parisian architecture changed at the end of the 19th century. You can see these new ideas in the curved lines and the way decoration flows into the structure itself.
The building sits on Rue La Fontaine in the 16th district and is private housing, so only the exterior is visible. The architectural details can be clearly seen and studied from the street without needing to enter.
The entrance door displays an unconventional design influenced by Antoni Gaudí, featuring metal seahorses climbing up through the wrought iron railings. This surprising detail is often overlooked, even though it is one of the most interesting features of the entrance.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,388 contributors worldwide.
