ALAIN SARFATI'S ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN PLANNING STUDIO TRANSFORMS AN OFFICE BUILDING INTO A UNIQUE AND BRIGHT COMPLEX OF APARTMENTS. AN INGENIOUS SYSTEM OF PANELS COVERING THE REAR FACADE LIKE SILVER SCALES REFERS IN THE MANNER OF A KALEIDOSCOPE OF BLUE SKY AND SUNSHINE WITHIN THE INNER COURTYARD DWELLINGS.
The former building of the SAGEP (Société Anonyme de Gestion des Eaux de Paris) is no longer in use. In its place, at 7-9 rue Schoelcher in the 14th arrondissement of Paris, we discover a brand new apartment building, which, like the old one, bears the so personal mark of its architect, Alain Sarfati. Because already in 1992, it was Alain Sarfati who was called upon by SAGEP to transform an old office building into an emblem for the company. Bought from the City of Paris by RIVP to create housing, the building was therefore entrusted to the same architect to carry out this new mission.
A real metamorphosis has been achieved.
The recommendation of the City of Paris was to preserve the facade designed by Alain Sarfati in 1992. It reigns, therefore, different and yet in harmony, in the middle of the other buildings of this increasingly white street with all its bright facades. Today, it has simply equipped itself with thermal insulation that will give the homes the expected comfort.
Respect for difference
The 3,833 m² of office space has been transformed into 54 different housing units. At the origin of these differences, the architect's desire to draw his plans by transforming into an opportunity the contextual constraints that were offered to him within the building: separation, partitions, stairs.... For Alain Sarfati, diversity has always been a key value in respecting differences and cultures, and for housing, a quality that encourages ownership.
A radiant and always renewed style
The ode to life, to light, to nature have always been the main themes of his many works. It is by discovering the interior façade of the building, which overlooks the courtyard, that we are struck by the personal genius of the architect, who does not seek to respond to any fashion, any diktat, but to liberate within his unbridled creativity everything that will offer the inhabitants of the building an optimized and personalized universe. The façade covered with silver panels creates a surprise, a delight of light that evolves with the clouds and the sun. Thanks to this kaleidoscopic effect, even the apartments on the lower floors directly overlooking the courtyard receive pieces of sky and sunlight. Fluidity and lightness are the order of the day. The walkway on the 5th floor offers the inhabitants a moment of almost emotional stroll before entering their respective apartments.
It is difficult to be sad in Alain Sarfati's architectural achievements! The extraordinary is the harmonious integration of this "enchanted" courtyard into the tangle of backyards that are well known to our Parisian eyes, forming a familiar and eminently reassuring whole in its urban character.
The priority of evolving housing
The Schoelcher Street building is also a real demonstration of the need and possibility for architects to consider several lives and changes in use for the buildings built, in particular to take into account the scalability of housing. Nowadays, the evolution of the family, the increase in life expectancy and the evolution of the world of work are completely disrupting the design of housing. The quality of these must be measured by their ability to transform.
A desirable future for everyone
For a century, the construction of social housing was frozen in its aesthetics: HLMs were to resemble HLMs. This is not Alain Sarfati's conception. Housing is a natural part of the city, without having to decline its titles or financing terms. The architectural approach is essential when it comes to projecting yourself into a desirable future, to create a tailor-made apartment, tailored to each family. The building on rue Schoelcher is an opportunity for Alain Sarfati to strongly mark his positions: "I have always wanted a democratic, i. e. urban architecture in the sense that it is part of the common good. I have always wanted it to be social, that is, attentive to differences, and I have always wanted it to be poetic, that is, to meet an expectation other than technical. »
Material Used :
1. Composite facade cladding: ALUCOBOND
2. Scale cladding: INVIDIA CONCEPT
3. Stainless steel mesh: Maille Metal Design
4. Synthetic stone coating: CAREA‐ARDAL
