VAL-DE-FONTENAY BANK, PARIS
hemmed in plot suggested a very different treatment from the one devised, De
27
́mians
says: “You might have expected the creation of a traditional closed garden courtyard, a confiscated urban space surrounded by re- assembled corner buildings. But I moved away from this idea very quickly, instead opening up the space completely at both ends to create a form of ‘headless’ project without beginning or end.” The buildings are served by a long, double height, interior street, containing a business centre and cafes, that runs below ground and connects into the rail station. A key client aim was to deliver an atmos- phere conducive to calm and concentration, with natural light and outside views. Workspaces benefit from very large 4 metre x 3 metre windows that look out onto planted greenery of the ‘valleys’ between buildings. The easily accessible outdoor areas have a semi-tropical climate and provide areas suitable for quiet individual contemplation or group meetings. The brief required an office with clean energy performance and spaces that can be adapted to the needs of the future generations of workers, enabling reversibility and modularity, and enhancing collaboration.
This sentiment was expressed in a company manifesto, published in the Journal of Financial Economics in 2015, it states: “We must observe how the digital relationship has changed our physical rela- tion to work. Coming to a soulless office in the morning to plunge head first into a computer alone behind a desk, or worse, in the middle of an open space, no longer makes any sense. Coming to the office has to provide something more. New work- places will respond to the human need for warmth and sharing. To meet this challenge this gigantic project must integrate the concepts and methods of our digital age: co-creation, collaboration and cooperation.”
Sound waves
The specific curved profiles of the three buildings are based on three frequencies of sinusoidal wave, their inflections were stretched upward until they met the spatial real estate targets set by the programme. Where previously, glass and metal facades were used to express the power of the company, a shift towards “a more individ- ual expression” led to the specification of undulating wood strips on the outer surfaces. As De
́mians poetically notes: “With the evolution of a facade, there may ADF FEBRUARY 2017
We must observe how the digital relationship has changed our physical relation to work
Journal of Financial Economics in 2015
be new materials to explore other than those with which we have been filling our sketchbooks for years.”
The wood is mounted on an extruded aluminium subframe, and forms part of a layered curtain wall solution, including windows, corridors and balconies, detailed and supplied by Italian envelope specialist Permasteelisa.
The wood/aluminium shell is raised above an underlying glass/aluminium Alucobond curtain wall. This gives the facade a thickness intended to mimic that produced in buildings built in stone and concrete. The rear curtain wall incorporates blinds, the large sliding glass windows intended to maximise views. The wood strips are highly durable, require zero maintenance throughout the building’s lifespan, and function principally as sun shades. In addition, the material imbues the facade with a natural, rustic tone and the slatted arrangement increases its transparency.
The wood was sourced from Japanese
WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK
The ‘valleys’ between blocks are densely planted courtyards intended to induce a feeling of calm and contemplation among staff
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
