After Milan's architectural expo came to a close at the end of last month, just a handful of the many grandstanding designs have managed to etch lasting impressions in our memories. One of which is France's fluid, wooden lattice structure that was conjured by Anouk Legendre of Studio X-TU in collaboration with Atelien Architecture.
Designed to ‘portray the geographic diversity of France’s regions, its unique agricultural offerings and culinary traditions’, the lightweight pavilion consisted of an interlocking, reusable framework of curvy glulam girders and pillars made from French spruce and larch that recall the hills and valleys of its landscape. The pavilion's low energy consumption was aided by a natural cooling and air circulation system while a series of arching entranceways of various sizes ushered visitors within the cavernous space.
Inside, the exhibition's theme, 'Feeding the Planet - Energy for Life', was addressed in the form of a 3,592 sq m covered market conceived by exhibition designer Adeline Rispal. Here, the impressive computer modelled structure became a trellis for climbing plants with edible produce displayed within its recesses. A mezzanine level housed the pavilion's offices and VIP event rooms, while upstairs a full-service restaurant called Café des Chefs served up vegetables grown onsite using hydroponics and seasoned using aromatic herbs from the terrace.
After drawing more than 2.2 million visitors and receiving a prize for best architecture and landscape by the Bureau International des Expositions, the pavilion has served its purpose, but its life is by no means over. Due to the fact that X-TU made the design fully reusable, we will be eagerly awaiting the announcement of its next incarnation in the not-so-distant future.
The lightweight pavilion consisted of an interlocking, reusable framework of curvy glulam girders and pillars made from French spruce and larch that recall the hills and valleys of the country's landscape.
A series of arching entranceways of various sizes ushered visitors within the cavernous space.
The architects used a computer modelling programme to design and build all of the interlocking wooden components, which were then cut using a digitally controlled robot.
The pavilion's low energy heating suction system situated in the central skylight was aided by a natural cooling and air circulation.
The exhibition's theme, 'Feeding the Planet - Energy for Life', was addressed inside in the form of a 3,592 sq m covered market conceived by exhibition designer Adeline Rispal. Here, the impressive structure became a trellis for climbing plants with edible produce displayed within its recesses.
INFORMATION
For more information visit the French Pavilion website
-
In Helsinki, Pauline Curnier Jardin has created the grotesque amusement park of her dreamsFrench artist Pauline Curnier Jardin celebrates otherness at Kiasma, Helsinki’s Museum of Contemporary Art
-
A celestial New York exhibition showcases Roman and Williams’ mastery of lightingLauded design studio Roman and Williams is exhibiting 100 variations of its lighting ‘family tree’ inside a historic Tribeca space
-
‘He immortalised the birth of the supermodel’: inside Dior’s career-spanning retrospective of photographer Peter LindberghOlivier Flaviano, curator and head of Paris’ La Galerie Dior, talks us through a new Peter Lindbergh retrospective, which celebrates the seminal German photographer’s longtime relationship with the French house
-
A floor made of tomato skins? Welcome to the Mutti Canteen by Carlo Ratti in ParmaMutti Canteen by Carlo Ratti is a new, environmentally friendly foodie piece of architecture within Parma's green countryside
-
Explore wood architecture, Paris' new timber tower and how to make sustainable construction look ‘iconic’A new timber tower brings wood architecture into sharp focus in Paris and highlights ways to craft buildings that are both sustainable and look great: we spoke to project architects LAN, and explore the genre through further examples
-
A transformed chalet by Studio Razavi redesigns an existing structure into a well-crafted Alpine retreatThis overhauled chalet in the French Alps blends traditional forms with a highly bespoke interior
-
La Grande Motte: touring the 20th-century modernist dream of a French paradise resortLa Grande Motte and its utopian modernist dreams, as seen through the lens of photographers Laurent Kronental and Charly Broyez, who spectacularly captured the 20th-century resort community in the south of France
-
Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain unveils plans for new Jean Nouvel buildingFondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain has plans for a new building in Paris, working with architect Jean Nouvel
-
Naples Central Station boasts a wavy, wooden signature roof that is dramatic and sculpturalNaples Underground Central Station by Benedetta Tagliabue is a work of art that’s inviting and vibrant, matching its dynamic context
-
Discover Tempe à Pailla, a lesser-known Eileen Gray gem nestled in the French RivieraTempe à Pailla is a modernist villa in the French Riviera brimming with history, originally designed by architect Eileen Gray and extended by late British painter Graham Sutherland
-
The Duho Pavilion by Limbo Accra immerses us into its Caribbean settingThe Duho Pavilion by Limbo Accra is a Cayman Islands landscape project that celebrates the Indigenous Caribbean Taino people
