Three façades set the tone

A façade that absorbs and reflects the moods created by the weather and the surroundings? For the architect Christelle Avenier, this approach, which embodies her own personal design philosophy, is a self-evident part of the requirements for new building projects. This was also the case with this project in Pantin, France. The task involved the construction of three new apartment buildings on a 6000-m² site, incorporating a total of 88 residential units and retail space. 
 
The buildings, which will be subdivided into privately owned apartments, are in the Pantin urban redevelopment zone, bounded by the Canal de l’Ourcq. They harmonise architecturally with their historical surroundings. It was important for Christelle Avenier to “integrate the design into the canal-side site with the listed, brick-built ‘Grands Moulins’ industrial mills built in 1884” and thus to engage in an architectural dialogue with the industrial heritage of the site.

The most authentic choice of façade material was therefore terracotta brick. The play of different colours was intended to bring the architecture to life and give each individual building a unique appearance. “We wanted to give each building its own identity; firstly with a specific shape, and secondly, using the shades of the bricks,” says Avenier. The brick ornamentation alternates between monolithic sections and rather airy surfaces. To select the right colours, the team looked at the bricks from different perspectives and under different lighting conditions. 
 
“You have to see the play of light on the product,” explains the architect. Ultimately, they chose titanium grey, silver grey and blue red, all of which vary in their shade depending on the intensity of light. “Titanium grey, for example, changes from a light, violet-coloured grey at sunset to a darker grey when it rains – so the visual impression changes depending on the weather.” Furthermore, the hand-formed bricks have irregular, slightly shaded edges that give the façades a timeless appearance.

In public housing construction, cost effectiveness and sustainability come first, even in the context of a condominium complex like this one in Pantin. With a view to this, Christelle Avenier particularly appreciates the durability of the brick and its capacity to age well without special care. 
 
Over the years, the building envelopes will take on a patina specific to the terracotta material – in perfect harmony with the nearby industrial heritage buildings.