jeannouvel/ It stands in the sunshine. It is familiar with and wary of the sun. But it plays an ancestral game. Shadows, reflections, views through the shutters... It has taken up residence along the River Lez. It overlooks it and invites it inside, too. It welcomes the river, lets it in... as a guarantee of freshness and vibrant light. It lives on the edge of a large park and the city, besieged by trees. The cobblestones from the square slip right inside the lobby... and down to the water. The urbane South has built itself a town square with fountains, cafés and boutiques under canvas awnings. Between the shopfronts and the terraces, gates regularly open onto inner courtyards along passageways with iron staircases and wrought-iron railings. It is in tune with the neighboring architecture, lying low, between the different levels of the esplanade of the park and the cobblestoned forecourt. It is hospitable. It looks like a huge transparent door opening onto its inner light and the park. It sports a splash of colour. Blue, like the sky, like the sea, like Montpelliers coat of arms. The blue gently reveals subtle transparencies, while protecting the suggestion of an inner life that interests the city inhabitants. It is wooden. Its outer skin is made out of silvery gray wood, with a hint of gold. This wood has already absorbed the sun and thus protected itself... Inside, the essence is smoother, warm, midway between honey and caramel. It is woven out of pieces of wood, orthogonal or parallel lines, in which chance seems to challenge logic. In the northwest, thin slats offer a striated view of the city. In the east and west, projectable shutters with adjustable louvers create a constantly changing panorama. In the south, horizontal brisesoleils shield the windows overlooking the park and into the distance. Four different façades are united by rhythm and materials. Two-dimensional weaving clads either horizontal and vertical planes. It is filled with an inner light, an intriguing vibration sensed from the entrance. This light is imprinted on the ceilings. In public buildings, ceilings reveal the nature of the institution. Here, in the public lobby, they are bright silver, adorned with the medallion profiles of Jacques Coeur or Cambacérès. Written on the walls of the Council Chamber, set against a background of different blues, are the fundamental principles of the Declaration of the Rights of Man. In the public reception room, a crowd of Montpellier citizens look down from the walls....
Posted on: Mon, 12 Jan 2015 10:17:23 +0000