Fashion photographer Ben Rayner has been documenting the assembly of Maison Tropicale – a prefabricated housing system developed by Jean Prouvé in the 1950s – in front of Tate Modern in London. 

The flat-pack house, made of folded sheet steel and aluminium, is one of three prototype Maisons Tropicales created by the French architect and was originally erected in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, in 1951.

The installation – which opens to the public on 5 February – coincides with the ongoing Jean Prouvé exhibition at the nearby Design Museum (see our earlier story).

Maison Tropicale was originally designed to address the shortage of housing in French colonies in West Africa during the 1950s.

“Jean Prouvé invented British high-tech architecture,” said Design Museum director Deyan Sudjic. “He shaped the careers of Richard Rogers, Norman Foster and a generation of others. But he never built anything in Britain.

“To bring Prouvé’s Maison Tropicale to the heart of London is a historic event. It’s a tribute to a great designer. And as Britain wrestles with how to go about building the millions of new houses that the governments wants, Prouvé’s house is a stunning example of how to build new homes quickly, cheaply, and well.”

The house will be open to the public from 5 February to 13 April 2008.

Above and below: Maison Tropicale as it will be when completed. These photos: Jean Prouvé Tropical House in New York, © C. Baraja & É. Touchaleaume, Archives Éric Touchaleaume.

The following press release is from the Design Museum: