Georges Tourry

Georges Tourry was a French urban planner and architect, and studied at the Polytechnic School in Paris and at the École des Beaux-Arts, graduating in 1931 with the plan for a church in a mining center. In Paris, he worked as an architect from 1935-51. He was best known for his reconstructions of the town of Lorient after World War II. Faced with a city that was reduced to a heap of ruins, Tourry first proposed to rebuild the city on another site but the inhabitants opposed this project. After several revisions, the restoration project of the old city, accompanied by new districts, was finally approved. In the 1960s, Tourry was appointed chief architect of the civil buildings and national palaces, led various hospital projects, built universities and designed major housing projects. He was a lecturer at the Polytechnic from 1946 to 1960 and Professor at the National School of Bridges and Roads. He was a member of the Société des architectes diplômés du gouvernement (S.A.D.G.) since in 1939, and was appointed Knight of the Legion of Honour.

His contribution for the 1948 art competitions was also part of his initial plans for the reconstruction of the city of Lorient. Although today’s Stade du Moustoir was built at the envisaged location, it was inaugurated only in 1959 with a capacity of only 6,000 seats. After the promotion of the local football team, the stadium was largely rebuilt in 1998.