Following the Atlas of Forms, Poursuite is publishing Électricité de France, the first book from the project Atlas des Régions Naturelles. Through a series of 75 photographs, Eric Tabuchi establishes a typology of power distribution stations – those buildings that transform high-voltage electricity into low-voltage current – and highlights the relation between the public service giant and regional architecture.
We usually don’t notice these technical buildings since they’re part of our everyday environment. However, they come in many different forms, if one takes time to observe them. Although many are made out of concrete and are primarily functional, a large number of them copy the architecture of the regions where they’re erected through the choice of construction material or the form of their roofs. For example, one may find transformers simulating the Normandie half-timbering whereas others are built out of the Trégor region’s pink granite.
By pairing houses and distribution stations, Électricité de France correlates local architecture and the national infrastructure, with a touch of humour.