Ristolas, village labellisé "Patrimoine du XXème siècle"

Before the destruction of June 1940, the economy of the mountains, and in particular that of the Southern Alps, was largely based on a secular agropastoral activity.
The house was essentially conceived as a work tool to house men, animals and crops under the same roof during the long winter months (the "block house").
The reconstruction in the Alps was not just a simple real estate operation, it often constituted a real cultural and technical break in the way of life and work of the local farmers.

Modernization was undoubtedly the general motto of the reconstruction in France and in the Alps. The opportunity offered by the "clean slate" caused by the destruction of the old buildings allowed the application of new urban planning and architectural principles developed between the two wars. These principles stemming from modernist currents emphasize the issues of sanitary comfort, particularly in farms (sanitary equipment, sunlight, ventilation), the functionality of buildings and their surroundings (zoning urbanism, regulated implantations) and premises (separation of functions).

The label of the XXth century heritage was launched by the Ministry of Culture and Communication in 1999; its purpose is to identify and bring to the attention of the public the buildings and urban ensembles protected or not as Historic Monuments or protected areas whose architectural and urban interest justifies their transmission to future generations as fully-fledged elements of the XXth century heritage: it is about constructions and major urban complexes of the XXth century built between 1900 and 1975 without distinction of program (works of art, housing, public buildings, factories, tourist equipment...). This heritage is indeed very exposed. The Ministry of Culture and Communication has created this label to highlight and safeguard the buildings and urban complexes that, among the achievements of this century, are material witnesses to the architectural, technical, economic, social, political and cultural evolution of our society.

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