Belleville is composed of two intersecting systems: on the one hand narrow busy roads lined with typical “faubourg”-style apartment buildings cascading down the hill; and on the other the spaces at the centres of the city blocks, which are very narrow, often planted, and lined with vernacular buildings running perpendicular to the slope. 

We wanted to restore this double-sided character on the Rue de Belleville with a design that plays the density game through a revisiting of the traditional faubourg housing type. The project does not constitute a break with the existing fabric, instead proposing a contemporary updating of the classic, simple morphology of this Parisian neighbourhood. 

The heart of the block is a green alley that harmonizes with the existing fabric and reveals the depth of the plot. Box-balconies stretch from the facade to offer generous outdoor spaces and wide and unobstructed views of Paris. 

A new building that will easily infiltrate the urban jungle while claiming a significant change: exit insalubrity, the density is here mastered and happy.