Situated in Carrière-Sous-Poissy in France along the River Seine, "Poissy Galore" by Armengaud Armengaud Cianchetta (AAC) and Herlach Hartmann Frommenwiler (HHF) is designed primarily as an ecological public space for both Parisian residents and far-flung visitors. Consisting of an observatory, an insect museum and a visitor center, the project title is an apt play on the James Bond film, both in terms of its expansiveness and playfulness. The inventive timber construction and visually arresting angular framing is as much a part of the project's allure as its nuanced integration into its 113 hectare site. 

As the architects explain, "With the exception of the observatory, which is a steel construction, the collection of pavilions and small 'follies' is based on a modular wood system, repeating and combining different sized and angled timber frames."

In addition to the public spaces, the project also has private offices and storage, including facilities to raise insects.

The latest in French design news:

• Inventively-clad gentrification in the form of Bordeaux's "Urban Dock"
• Jean Nouvel's court battle over the Philharmonie continues
• New-Territories projects forward in its "retrospective" at the FRAC Centre in Val de Loire, France