Type architecture: Modern

Remarkable architecture from the 1960s, this Californian villa is at the heart of a modernist project that has been awarded the “Patrimoine du XXème” label, on its 800 m2 plot in a wooded park at the gateway to the Calanques. A project with character designed by the Marion Bernard architectural firm.

Before …

Target

Preserve the soul of this single-storey Californian villa, while renovating and enlarging it to adapt it to contemporary uses. Enhance its emblematic architecture and strengthen its link with the surrounding countryside.

Course of action

The renovation was carried out with a view to preserving the original architectural features, while adding modernity and comfort. The Fontvieille stone and hollow brick facade, sliding wooden shutters and low stone walls were carefully restored. Inside, the horizontal fireplace in brick and Cassis stone and the large terrazzo floor have been restored to their former glory.

Achievement

On the south side, the sleeping quarters are distributed on either side of the entrance hall by a corridor punctuated by typical 60s storage units.

To the north-west, the living areas are arranged in a row along the terraces, one of which is extended by a swimming pool in the shade of tall umbrella pines. Each extension of the house has been designed as a continuity towards the outside, with terraces allowing you to take full advantage of the surrounding nature. The living room, dining room and kitchen all open out onto the landscape, allowing for total immersion in the natural environment.

 

Partner brands :

Micro terrazzo and terrazzo : @varponcage
Tiles : @carre_creatif
Sanitary equipment : @richardson.officiel @trone_paris
Brazilian Quartzite worktop : @marbreriegambini_mattout
Woodwork: Rabot
Furniture and artwork : @axel_chay @relax_factory @piece.a.part @francois_bazin_studio @architectureceramique @archik
Painting : @ressource_peintures
Bed linen : @laservietteparis
Handles: @fredericpellenq
Travertine : @talka_decor

Original plans & project

Modernist architecture immersed in nature, close to sea and hills

LE QUARTIER

Private: Pointe-Rouge

At the gates of the Calanques, between Vieille Chapelle and Montredon.

L'ARCHITECTE LA LÉZARDIÈRE

  • Crédits photosJulie Fleutot
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Transforming a commercial space, using light, space and raw materials in a way that respects the existing building.

Before …

Target

Convert a commercial space on the first floor of a 1980s building into living space, while revealing the qualities of the existing building.

Course of action

The building’s orientation (East-West), its relationship to the exterior (garden and street) and its structure (reinforced concrete) were the three characteristics that guided the design process.

The plan expresses this orientation, allowing the building to “follow the sun” throughout the day, and thus to have a living space that changes atmosphere according to the light. The existing reinforced concrete structure organizes the apartment and creates sequences. It is also the starting point for the materiality. The brutality of concrete contrasts with the warmth of oak and the preciousness of stainless steel. The painted oak floor is deliberately neutral and light, like a backdrop for the furniture. Framing is used to reveal, give depth, set the scene or escape. They create transversal relationships between the reception and service areas.

Achievement

To make the transition from commercial to residential use, the street entrance was modified to create a new relationship with the street, and to distance the building from it by opening onto the garden.

A new street façade was created, and the first floor was turned into a living space by “inhabiting” the windows: in the kitchen in the living area and the dressing room in the bedroom.

On the garden side, a generous bench was created to encourage contemplation.

The building presented a number of technical constraints, notably the presence of water and air drainage systems. Meticulous work had to be carried out on site on the false ceilings to keep the volumes uncluttered and make them a strength of the project.

Original plans & project

An ambience combining raw elegance and luminous warmth.

L'ARCHITECTE Louis EISENLHOR

architectes@archik.fr
  • Crédits photosPhilippe Billard
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Édifiée entre 1947 et 1952 par Charles Édouard Jeanneret dit Le Corbusier, La Cité Radieuse située dans le 8ème arrondissement de Marseille concrétise le projet d’un « village vertical » appelé « Unité d’Habitation ».

Cette cité-jardin verticale, construite sur pilotis, est inscrite au patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO depuis 2016. Créative et avant-gardiste, son architecture surprenante telle un paquebot offre une multitude de jeux de lumière, de perspectives et de couleurs, se présentant comme une œuvre architecturale à part entière.

Derrière ce projet fou de 337 appartement, se cache la forte volonté du  Corbusier d’instaurer une nouvelle manière d’Habiter, permettant de vivre ensemble et de libérer les femmes.

Le Corbusier

Né le 6 octobre 1887 et décédé le 27 août 1965,
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris plus connu sous le pseudonyme Le Corbusier, est un architecte du mouvement moderne. Aux côtés notamment de Robert Mallet-Stevens et de Mies Van Der Rohe, il est un artiste complet opérant également en tant qu’urbaniste et designer. Fondateur de principes tels que le Modulor ou l’Unité d’Habitation, son œuvre comprend 17 sites – 10 en France – classés au Patrimoine mondial de l’Unesco tandis que de nombreuses de ses réalisations sont classées Monuments Historiques.

Parmi ses œuvres emblématiques on compte La Cité Radieuse à Marseille, La Villa Savoye à Poissy, la ville de Chandigarh en Inde et la chapelle Notre-Dame-du-Haut à Ronchamp. Il signe également des pièces de mobilier phares tels que le fauteuil LC2 et la lounge chair LC4.