Médiathèque de Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois by archi5 and CALMM architecture
Located in Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois, some 20 kilometres south-west of Paris, the new médiathèque designed by archi5 and CALMM architecture will sit in the Aunettes district.
This town in the Essonne département, home to 35,000 people, wants to give its residents a facility whose appeal will extend well beyond the boundaries of the Aunettes district.
The project stands at the heart of a district that is currently made up of straight, linear blocks of social housing. It is in this context that the archi5 architects have built the médiathèque on a rectangular footprint. It unfolds over two levels totalling 3,174 m2 and is opened up by three patios.
To "draw the eye", the architects have designed a curved roof that invites passers-by to step inside the médiathèque. The building is largely open to the outdoor space, showcasing the trees bordering the block, a rare landscape feature in the district that softens the mineral environment of the HLM housing blocks.
The project will be wrapped in glass, with a copper-coloured screen set against it to shield the interior from the sun's rays. "It contrasts with the existing buildings. Its distinctiveness gives it its identity and its value as a landmark," the architects explain.
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4 images- © Fred Peronne