Aviation & Exploration Memory
Genève — Quai du Mont-Blanc belongs to the Six Origins Corpus, the foundational body of compositions through which the early visual language of the Maison was established. It records a moment of rare historical significance for Geneva that existed largely in scattered archives rather than living cultural form.
Issued in 2020, the work preserves the arrival of the Latécoère 631 on Lake Geneva — the largest aircraft ever to land upon its waters. Through composition, a fleeting event becomes permanent memory, fixed within the custodial field of the Maison.
Aviation & Exploration Chamber
50 total attributions
Formats
42 × 59 cm · 59 × 84 cm · 89 × 128 cm
Composition Characteristics
Additional Details
On 12 June 1948, a Latécoère 631 descended upon Lake Geneva near the Quai du Mont-Blanc. Monumental in scale and almost mythical in presence, it remains the largest aircraft known to have landed on the lake. Prior to this composition, the episode survived mainly through a handful of photographs and fragmented historical references.
The Latécoère 631 represented the final age of grand transatlantic seaplane travel. Carrying passengers in cabins designed for comfort, with beds, lounges, and refined interiors, it belonged to a moment when aviation still carried the atmosphere of ocean liners and ceremonial departure. Geneva received the aircraft for three days before its onward assignment toward the Caribbean.
This composition restores that encounter to the cultural memory of the city. It establishes Geneva not only as a diplomatic and financial center, but also as a place touched by one of aviation’s last great luxury giants. What history leaves dispersed, the Maison reorders into continuity.
The work is preserved within the official collection of the Fondation Latécoère, reinforcing the historical relevance of this recorded entry.