Les Choux de Créteil

By Greyscape
19th January 2018

Les Choux de Créteil, a fab 1970s development, 40 minutes by car from the Champs Elysée which was inspired by cabbages.

The way we see it clearly this veggie patch had a hallucinogenic element. The original plan was that real vines would cascade over the edges of the concrete balconies however the idea was put aside by the developers who had dual concerns, insect infestation and the possibility that homeowners might not care for the plants properly. Interviewed many years later, Gerard Grandval, the architect, revealed that his only regret was that the planting and nurturing of the vines did not happen as he had imagined, the petals covered in ‘a vegetable skin that changed with the seasons, a concept now very fashionable’. It remains mysterious and fabulous and well worth the trip.

Photo Credits: Howard Morris