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GREEK MYTHOLOGY THE LEGEND OF HIPPOMENES The Greek legend of Hippomenes recounts how the young huntress Atalanta was obliged by her father to take a husband. She agreed to marry the first man to outrun her. All her suitors perished until Hippomenes decided to try his luck. With the help of Aphrodite, Hippomenes dropped three golden apples during the race to distract Atalanta. Because she stopped to pick up the apples, she lost the race and gave her hand in marriage to Hippomenes. The leading Geneva banker and lover of football, Gustave Hentsch, created the Hippomenes Foundation in 1943 to support the development of sporting activities in the Geneva canton,in recognition of Hippomenes will to win.

INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE THE PIC-PIC CAR The Charmilles district was a favorite leisure destination of the inhabitants of Geneva in the 19th century, but later became a major site of industrial and manufacturing activity. In 1919, the Piccard, Pictet & Cie factory started making the famous Pic-Pic car in the emblematic building of the same name that was built in 1917 by the architects Guillaume Revilliod and Maurice Turrettini. But the costly vehicle was simply too expensive for the post-war period and production was halted soon after the company went bankrupt in 1921. In 1921 the Ateliers des Charmilles SA was founded, specializing in the machining and sale of hydraulic turbines. HAUTE COUTURE THE ELNA SEWING MACHINE In 1934, Tavaro SA moved into the buildings that had been left empty by Piccard, Pictet & Cie. In 1940, the company started manufacturing the Elna sewing machine, which had been produced by a small company in Châtelaine for the two previous years. The first machine was invented by Ramon Casas, a refugee Spanish engineer who had fled to Switzerland. As he took an old model apart in order to repair it, the young graduate was seized by an urge to make it better. The result was revolutionary. Unlike the gloss black machines with gold decorations that had been the tradition since the beginning of the century, the Elna was as green as a grasshopper, which became the machine s nickname in America. While other leading manufacturers offered machines derived from professional models, the Elna was designed to be portable and practical enough for use in the home only.

URBAN CHARACTER HAUTE COUTURE THE TAVARO FACTORY The Tavaro factory was built in 1946 by Jean Erb, one of the most prolific industrial architects of the 1940s and 1950s. Designed specially for the manufacture of Elna sewing machines, the site included a building for technical and administrative departments as well as production workshops. The architecture draws inspiration from the rationalist style, which also influenced Jean Erb in the design of the site of the Hispano- Suiza society. The composition is inspired by modernist influences, combining spaces with large bay windows and long glazed sections and highlighting the contrast between solid and hollow forms.

URBAN CHARACTER MODERNIST ARCHITECTURE THE ELNA ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDING Tavaro SA decided to construct a building for the factory s administrative departments. In a competition held in 1956 that pitched Suter & Suter against Ernest Martin and Georges Addor, the latter s project was selected and went on to win the first prize for architecture. The modernist construction became the Elna brand s international showcase, and is now one of the most interesting examples of 1950s post-industrial architecture in Geneva. Today, the building has been converted into offices and is the home of the Bénédict Hentsch & Cie bank.

EVENTS CENTER GREEN SPACES THE ESPACE HIPPOMENE The Espace Hippomène, a prestige center for events and culture capable of welcoming up to 3,500 people, was inaugurated in 2008 as part of the conversion of the former Tavaro factory. The renovation project has respected the initial style of the building, which was strongly influenced by the Bauhaus movement. The main machine room and the three floors of workshops in the adjacent building have been fully converted and adapted to the needs of a multifunctional venue for events. The Geneva-based architects Ris_Chabloz used raw materials such as steel and concrete in a pure design that respects the industrial characterof the building down to the last detail. THE GUSTAVE AND LEONARD HENTSCH PARK The Gustave and Léonard Hentsch Park project is the centerpiece of the renewal of the Charmilles district in Geneva. The Park will be located on the site of the football ground that was home to Servette FC for almost a century. This vast area in the heart of a densely populated district, will offer inhabitants a 3.3 hectare haven of greenery and will enhance the quality of life in the district, while protecting its industrial heritage. Following the renovation of the Elna building and the Espace Hippomène, the Park project will be completed by the renovation and extension of the Pic-Pic building and the construction of residential buildings in 2013. This project has been made possible by Bénédict Hentsch, President of the Hippomenes Foundation.

GREEN SPACES

Société d exploitation de l Espace Hippomène SA Avenue de Châtelaine 7 CH-1203 Genève t +41 22 560 00 70 f +41 22 560 00 80 www.espacehippomene.ch Design : blossom, Sophie Jaton / Photos and illustrations : DAEL Service des monuments et des sites, Luca Fascini, Stéphane Gros, Martine Rascle, Imagina