Héliotrope rooftop extension in Paris by Bang Architectes
Photographer Julien Lanoo introduces the latest project by Bang Architectes, the practice led by Nicolas Gaudard and Nicolas Hugoo. Set on a narrow plot in Paris's 20th arrondissement, the two-storey house has a floor area of 60 m². The new family needed more space, and more light. Besides a wall some twenty metres high that blocks the sun, an underground aqueduct beneath the site makes the ground damp.
It was this context that led the architects to design a heliotropic extension. The narrowness of the site and the existing structure called for an extension that was both light and bright.
As a structural precaution, the new storeys rest on "stilts" of untreated Douglas fir glulam, since the existing walls were not strong enough to carry the load.
The house widens as it spans the passage, opening it up towards the street and bringing its façades out to the limits set by planning rules, all without exceeding the client's budget.
The façade is made up of timber uprights spaced at 80 cm centres, each bay filled with 32 mm argon-filled double glazing to reduce thermal bridging.
The floors and roof are built from pine and oriented strand board (OSB). As well as bringing in more light, the profile of the timber frame acts as a genuine brise-soleil, helping to regulate the temperature in summer.
The slenderness of the slats gives the house its character and lets it hold its own among the larger buildings around it. This façade treatment "sidesteps the problem of composing a façade on such a small volume", the architects note.
The interior is organised around a stairwell topped with roof windows, which cuts through the successive floors, tapering as it descends to the ground floor.
To make the most of this natural light, the living room has been placed on the top floor. This level also has a small south-facing terrace. The interior is free of partitions, leaving room for flexibility and light.
Gallery
10 images- © Julien Lanoo
- © Bang Architectes