La monographie d’architecte, un modèle épistémologique dépassé ? Réflexions autour du cas de l’architecte Jean-Arnaud Raymond (1738-1811)

Abstract

While a compartmentalized approach to architectural history writing is gradually fading, many challenges of interdisciplinarity remain, particularly when addressing topics as divisive as a monographic focus. Through a case study of a single architect, this article explores how disciplinary cross-fertilization can meaningfully contribute to biographical analysis. Anchored in a research framework structured around chronology – spanning the late Ancien Régime to the First Empire – and professional status – that of the ‘architecte du Roi’ – it demonstrates how diverse methodologies provide a more nuanced understanding of an architect’s career strategies in all their complexity. To illustrate this, the paper examines the figure of Jean-Arnaud Raymond (1738-1811), heir to a long dynasty of Toulouse-based carpenters and an architect simultaneously serving the king and the province of Languedoc. By situating Raymond within the broader collective portrait of his generation, this study considers his career through the lens of micro-history and the history of cultural interactions between Paris and the provinces. This approach highlights the distinctiveness of Raymond’s trajectory while keeping it grounded in the larger professional landscape of his time. In this case, interdisciplinarity sheds light on overlooked aspects of an individual’s life and work while preserving a holistic perspective on the professional networks and shared practices that shaped his career.