Tour Guillot-Bourdeix, High-rise building in Grange Blanche district, Lyon, France.
Tour Guillot-Bourdeix is a 14-storey, 72-metre office tower in Grange Blanche, Lyon, at 150 cours Albert-Thomas. Its facade is a grid of dark rectangular windows set in grey frames between vertical concrete or stone columns; a blue WHO/IARC sign covers part of the lower left. A low rotunda holding a 120-seat auditorium is linked to the tower by an entrance hall.
Construction began in 1969 to plans by Lyon architects Pierre Bourdeix, who designed the tower, and Paul Guillot, who designed the auditorium, with Roland Mendelsohn as consulting architect for INSERM. President Georges Pompidou inaugurated the tower on 9 June 1972. IARC occupied it until 2023, when it moved to the Gerland Biodistrict; the city launched a conversion call for projects in May 2022, selected the winning scheme in June 2023, and delivery is planned for 2028.
The tower's name honours its two Lyon architects: Pierre Bourdeix designed the tower and Paul Guillot the adjoining auditorium rotunda. The entrance hall holds a sculpture by Pierre Mathieu in slate and solid mahogany, given by the Fondation Mérieux, depicting DNA. The blue facade sign with the globe-and-staff emblem and the words "Centre International de Recherche sur le Cancer" remains a landmark on the cours Albert-Thomas.
The tower is located within the medical district near Edouard Herriot Hospital and is easily accessible from surrounding streets. The area is well-organized and straightforward to navigate on foot.
The entrance hall holds a sculpture by Pierre Mathieu in slate and solid mahogany, given by the Fondation Mérieux, which depicts DNA. The tower's name honours its two Lyon architects, Pierre Bourdeix, who designed the tower, and Paul Guillot, who designed the adjoining auditorium rotunda.
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