Final study project, with merit

Teachers and Architects : Laurent Tournié, Christophe Maisonobe

Lisle-sur-Tarn is a medieval bastide town in the South-West of France built on a strict grid composed by two main directions. Located on a plateau situated at an altitude of twenty meters from the level of the Tarn river, the city has a natural limit traced by its waterway. The construction of a new public building takes place inside the forti cations to the West limit of the city center and attempts to embed itself in the original bastide regulatory plan. The privileged location of the project site allows questioning the city center’s boundaries presently composed of the old forti cations. Currently private the plot nishes “La Glacière” and Joseph Rigal streets on the Est. The extension of these streets in the site creates a new junction that allows for a uid urban pathway. “La Glacière” street is therefore prolonged by following the natural boundary drawn by Rabistau river, which joins up with the city entrance located to the South of the bastide.

To build is to construct the empty with the full. This is the de nition of boundary between buildings and public spaces. Therefore, this building is implanted in a way as to construct the limits of both extended streets. The project consequently has two main directions. The rst, given by the ground oor, joins the one of the bastide and is visible by a succession of walls that are parallel to Joseph Rigal street. The second direction is marked by the volume of the second oor which is perpendicular to the rst. The entrance is located at the intersection of both streets and is covered by a “pontet”, a bridge like constructions visible throughout Lisle-sur-Tarn. This element also allows to frame the green landscape right from the eastern entrance of the plot. The landscape is particularly appreciable thanks to the position of the building on a base that creates a belvedere. The rst oor has a direct relationship with the city; it’s made of bricks and is largely open onto the adjacent outdoor spaces. The volume of the second oor welcomes a dance studio that is fully open towards the sky and built of concrete. Perpendicularly placed one on top of the other, the two volumes recreate the limits of the city block and become part of the dense tissue.

Furthermore, three apartments are integrated in the continuity of the existing blocks. A commercial space follows the logic of the existing shops located on the Henry Maynard square.