In 1925, The city council decided upon a vast urban project. A wave of new construction projects marked the development of the city.
Art Deco, with its pure and unobtrusive forms was the chosen style for the program. Under the leadership of Jacques D'Welles, City Architect, the Judaïque swimming pool, and the City Trade Union Council building (cours A. Briand) were built with modern yet discrete forms that integrated harmoniously with the classical architecture of the city.
Some architects were more audacious with their designs, such as Raoul Jourde, designer of the arched Stade Lescure (boulevard du Maréchal Leclerc), which is both elegant and revolutionary.
The style is unmistakably Art Deco, yet some of the sculptural studies of females and athletes (Main entrance) are directly inspired from classicism. Inaugurated in July 1938, it was the largest and most modern stadium in Europe.
Concrete for public works, and stone for private projects - the interesting choice of these different materials did not prevent the Stade Lescure from influencing the design of the surrounding quarter from 1925.
The peaceful and shaded streets are lined with beautiful and rather strict residences, that have a certain elegance. Simply designed porches play on the light and shade, while the stained and decorated glass of the windows (medallions, rosaries...) add a touch of modernity.
From 1920, René Buthaud, produced masterpieces that placed him among the finest ceramic artists of the period between the two great wars.
The geometry is to be found not only in the design of the decor itself, but also in the highly arched profile of the vases themselves.
Architects, ceramic artists and interior designers, if not always exactly in line with pure Art Deco techniques, are constantly in search of new creations that complement the more traditional style.
Jacques Chaban Delmas Stadium
60 years of Bordeaux history. The stadium, now called "Stade Jacques Chaban Delmas", is a remarkable example of 1930's architecture and is one of the landmarks of Bordeaux's XXth century history.
LESCURE : JUNE 1938 - JUNE 1998
12th June 1938, the stadium is opened with great fanfare: Quarter final of the World Cup between Brazil and Chekoslovakia... the Brazilians won 2 - 1.
In 1923 Fernand Philippart, Mayor at that time, proposed to build a large stadium. The plan was for the stadium to hold 10 000 people, a very ambitious project for the time.
Building started ten years later in 1933 under the management of two architects Raoul Jourde and Jacques D'Welles, and an Italian engineer, Dabbeni.
The Athletic facility next door was built during the same period between 1938 and 1940.
The Lescure stadium is unusual in that it was the first stadium to have covered stands. The modernity inspired by the neoclassical movement can be found everywhere: in the details, the decoration, the forms and curves.
Our stadium is an architectural model that is still considered today to be of fine quality and great beauty.
In 1941, the Girondins, recent winners of the French Cup, finally played in the grass of Lescure.
A MULTIPURPOSE STADIUM
On the superb track that surrounds the pitch, numerous cycle races have taken place, with of course, the Tour de France arrivals and the victorious sprints by André Darrigade. A few years after the Liberation, in 1950, the Girondins won their first professional Championship, at home.
It was also the period when hockey matches were played on grass and when boxing could be seen.
In 1955, Lescure hosted its first Rugby Championship final.
The first modernisation works were carried out in 1963 with lighting being installed for nocturnal matches. Finally in 1987 the cycle track was taken out in order to make more space for spectators.
Lescure has a history that not all stadiums have.
Lescure has been the host of many moments of great joy and enthusiasm that have often played a great role in the life, and joy of the city.
The most recent moments: Bordeaux-Milan AC or Prague in the semifinals of the European Cup have both left exceptional memories of victory.
Renovated and enlarged for the World Cup in June 1998, the World's largest sporting event, the stadium celebrated its 60th birthday with visitors from around the world and the fervor of such an exceptional event.
