In the heart of Paris's famous Marais district, the “Rue Pavée” project crosses an urban fabric shaped not by a single historical vision but by centuries of continuous transformation. Originally occupied by aristocratic hôtels particuliers organized around courtyards and gardens, the district gradually evolved from the eighteenth century onward as workshops, shops, and industrial activities occupied interior plots, creating a dense hybrid fabric where housing, production, commerce, and infrastructure coexisted.

From the street, the intervention remains deliberately restrained. Restored façades preserve the scale and continuity of the historic streetscape, while contemporary additions remain almost invisible. Passing through the entrance gateways reveals an unexpected interior landscape. The courtyard establishes a dialogue between two architectural conditions: the restored masonry façades of the former hôtels particuliers and the rehabilitated industrial structure, whose repetitive steel frame and glazed façade introduce light and transparency deep into the block. Rather than opposing these two histories, the project organizes their coexistence. The courtyard becomes a space of connection, distributing movement, framing views, and linking the aristocratic and industrial identities of the site.

The project combines two complementary programmes that reinforce the mixed-use character of the Marais. The headquarters of the cosmetics company Caudalie occupies the restored hôtels particuliers and the rehabilitated industrial building, bringing together offices, flexible workspaces, event venues, retail, and a spa. On the other side, the project introduces a strong social dimension through the client Paris Habitat, the city's public housing authority. One of the historic hôtel particulier is converted into family housing, while a new residence for young workers is integrated into the roof space of the former industrial building. Together, these complementary programmes create a genuinely mixed urban environment where work, housing, hospitality, commerce, and public life coexist within the same architectural structure. This diversity of uses extends the historical evolution of the site, where residential, productive, and commercial activities have long occupied the same urban fabric.

Team:

Architects: Mars architectes + Cigüe, Lagneau Architects

Photographers: Maris Mazulis, Raphaël Renard