Thanks to his philosophy teacher, Eric Guénot discovered painting during evening courses at his secondary school. The discovery hit him like a stroke of lightning, but his parents were dead set against him making a career of art. So Guénot reoriented his pursuits toward architecture. During his last year of studies, he took some courses in computer graphics and began to work on multimedia projects. With the support of the Jean-Luc Lagardère Foundation, Eric Guénot was able to realize his most coveted dream: to set up an Internet server. “I wouldn’t have derived as much pleasure from the creation of a CD-ROM. This way, I can deal with the interface, the playful aspect, the means of navigation and so on.” Early on, Guénot’s project had to change its name; now known as W-zone, it can be consulted on his website, www.w-zone.com. The site includes a presentation on Sarajevo. Eric Guénot made the rounds of French architecture schools with this website and his work has earned an excellent reputation. The site was presented at the latest Communica Festival. Eric Guénot has also produced other sites and CD-ROMs as artistic director at Mediakronik, and is working on some “mini-software” programs for architectural use: the idea is to provoke various actions on a given architectural project by using keywords. Guénot is not just a virtual architect, however; he is also building three houses in the south of France.

Activities since receiving the grant

- In 1998, Eric Guénot created a CD-ROM on architecture for the Museo Constantini in Buenos Aires.
- In 1999, he created an interactive game (Médecine-Radiologie) for the Saint-Antoine Hospital.
- In 2000, he won the Innovation and Creativity award at the Communica Festival for his website, www.w-zone.com.
- In 2001, he created a promotional CD-ROM for Shazz’s new album (Sony Music). He also founded Agence 5, a creative agency, and set up its website, www.agence5.com. The agency specializes in architecture, design and graphics.
- In 2002, he created a young people’s portal on the Internet for Paris City Hall.
- In 2003, W-zone became a digital design agency specializing in graphics and technology.