SITE The site the “gorges de Franchard” is the most popular among the forest massif of Fontainebleau (the biggest listed site in France). This very sensitive site of high quality within the new nature reserve « biosphère » is supported by the European program « PROGRESS »

ORDER The very first Eco tourism center within the île de France’s goal is the better management of the traffic flow of the area as much as the public awareness of its great fragility. Organized around a welcoming and exhibiting area, the project includes a great hall designed for group receptions and pedagogical activities.

ARCHITECTURAL PROJECT The project is developed based on the analyses the agency made on the building’s atmospheres and its connections to the landscape. The building is thought as a living room in the woods. Its wide and smooth shapes gently wandering along the preserved trees are inspired form the eroded stones seen on the site.

As a true dialogue between architecture and nature the project defines new limits. On one hand there are public areas and one the other the fragile forest with limited access.

The global environmental approach guiding the project insures the control of its impact. The orientation choices and the protection from the main winds optimise the bioclimatic solutions and the eco friendly energies sources used. The use of wood and its implementation gives us the opportunity for eco-construction solutions. Superficial foundations insure the project’s reversibility.

This comfortable and functional project offers a high degree of flexibility depending on the season and one the attendance rate.