A small service station of the mid-1950s under a tall red and white totem, restored and reopened in 2024.
At a glance
On the old Route Nationale 10, at Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine, the OZO Bellevue station was designed by Paul Lagneau in 1955-56 for the OZO brand. A tall red and white totem carrying the letters OZO curves down into the canopy over the pumps. France gave it the label for remarkable contemporary architecture in 2016, and a local association restored it and reopened it on 21 September 2024.
Key facts
- Architect: Paul Lagneau
- Built: 1955-1956
- Road: the former RN10
- Label: Architecture contemporaine remarquable, 2016
- Reopened: 21 September 2024, after restoration by the Nostal’10 association
- GPS: 47.091474, 0.610388 · Open in Google Maps
History
In the years of the post-war motoring boom the fuel brands used the sign itself as architecture. At Bellevue the totem is not beside the station but part of it: it rises from the ground and turns into the edge of the canopy. The station is now used for events.
What you see
A low glazed kiosk banded in red, under a thin canopy with a red edge. At one end the tall white totem, lettered OZO in red, carries the canopy and rises well above it.
Related
Sources
- Wikipedia (French), Station-service OZO Bellevue: Paul Lagneau, 1955-56, the 2016 label, the Nostal’10 association, the reopening on 21 September 2024
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