The renovation of this old traditional house into a house of culture (Maison De La Culture) was the opportunity to redefine two public spaces and link them together. The aim of the project is to create an interaction between the important Ange Denis place to the east and the small courtyard to the West. The main architectural intervention was to open the Eastern facade, which was totally closed.
Architects: Atelier 56S
Location: France
Area: 350.0 m2
Project Year: 2017
Photographs: Jeremias Gonzalez
Manufacturers: Knauf, Technal, SLV
The existing construction of Maison De La Culture is composed of the main building, and two secondary elements on each side, both are two storeys high. All the service spaces are gathered in the main building to free the wings of the building for the four required functions. Flexibility, sobriety, and respect for the existing building summarize the goals of this rehabilitation project.
On the ground floor, in the southern wing, a third-place space is created, it is an informal space that allows interactions between the visitors of the building. To the north, a multipurpose space will host conferences, expositions, and concerts. On the first floor, the media library is divided between a reading room for adults and a playing and reading room for children
The old stone walls are left apparent inside the library, the ground flooring is dark concrete and sometimes perforated metal for acoustic performances, above, an oak floorboards flooring offers a cozy atmosphere to all the reading areas, also, a wood fibre ceiling was chosen for acoustic comfort.
In the yard behind the new house of culture, tiles were saved from the existing building to compose a calm public space sheltered from the road.
