For this pool commissioned by Rennes mayor Jean Janvier, architect Emmanuel Le Ray based his design on the Paris-based Butte-aux-Cailles pool (1923) and the pool in the Nancy thermal complex, built in 1904.
The architect opted for clean lines and regular spaces but paid particular attention to decoration, calling on the services of the famous Odorico family, Italian mosaic artists based in Rennes since 1882. The mosaic artists created a 96m-long frieze inside the pool itself as well as glazed sandstone motifs on the façade that reflect the building’s purpose.
This was Rennes’ first swimming pool. It opened in 1925 on the site of the former 11th-century Benedictine abbey church, which was destroyed in the 19th century. The sculpted capitals from the nave of this church are now on display in the Brittany Museum.
Sauna
Swimming pool (33.33 x 14m)