A shimmering band within the city, gently swinging out. With a flor plan that is reminscent of a butterfly, symmetrical and rising in hight - utilized as an office space. The imagery of the building clearly shows what a building close to the acoustic epicentre of the Boulevard Péripherique is required to achieve, and it als masters this challenge brilliantly.
The office building with its two "wings" and the shared connecting auditorium looks like a solitaire, but its shape oscillates freely in the context of a harsh environment. Gentrification is therefore required, and good architecture can deliver that. The gross floor area of 22'500 square meters is use-neutral and arranged around the cores. Green inner courtyards in the centre, invoking a sense of nature away from the periphery of Paris.
The project builds on a balance of economic and ecological aspects, each logically complementing the other. Hence, the compact structures are compelling in terms of both economic efficiency and energy efficiency. Installing neutral, free spaces between the façades and circulation areas ensures long-term use of the building. The extremely inert envelope of the building plays a key role in terms of both thermal insulation and soundproofing. The roof is fitted with gently inclined photovoltaic modules throughout, thus lending the fifth façade a homogeneous appearance. The inclination of the modules adds additional emphasis to the dynamic character of the building.
While the butterfly serves as a reflector for the non-stop flow of traffic on the motorway, it presents itself to pedestrians on Rue Paul Meurice as very respectful of scale and differentiated in terms of space. The swinging solitary building becomes a strong backbone in the street with a corner solution that cleverly evolves from the offsetting of different levels. It is here that the efficiency of the architecture as an overall solution in a heterogeneous context sees the culmination of its ability to deliver quality. Precisely because the corner solution can be derived from the overall concept without upsetting the whole, without any grand gestures, with great subtlety and yet visibly. The butterfly on the periphery.
Completion 2019
Further information about our office in Paris here.
Photographers
Sergio Grazia
Tilt and shoot
archphoto, inc. © Baumschlager Eberle Architekten
Paris, April 3, 2019
