50 years after its construction, the Frédéric Chopin Conservatory in Paris’s 15th arrondissement has undergone a renovation project.
The first phase of this transformation is urban in scope. In 2023, the City of Paris and Paris Habitat will demolish the concrete slab in the Bargue Procession neighborhood that almost entirely concealed the conservatory. In a second phase, the building will be restructured according to an “ideal DIY” approach dear to the Litotes studio. The intervention highlights the existing architectural framework. The concrete base designed by Zehrfuss and Philippe Bigot is restored and opened up to accommodate the lobby. The steel addition built in 1995 by Didier Bigot is reinterpreted: a raised volume to signal the entrance and a second, more massive one in the background.
The facades are constructed entirely from reused materials. The limestone that illuminates the entrance facade comes from a high school built in the 1980s. This stone facade on a wooden substructure required an experimental building permit (ATEx), paving the way for the reuse of the abundant supply of clipped stones removed during thermal retrofits. The 30,000 paving stones that shape the massive texture of the auditorium in the background were sourced from the site. They were identified during the competition, collected from the surrounding construction site managed by Jacky Suchail Architectes, and laid out in a precise and regular pattern.
To learn more, watch the video.The facades are constructed entirely from reused materials. The limestone that illuminates the entrance facade comes from a high school built in the 1980s. This stone facade on a wooden substructure required an experimental building permit (ATEx), paving the way for the reuse of the abundant supply of clipped stones removed during thermal retrofits. The 30,000 paving stones that shape the massive texture of the auditorium in the background were sourced from the site. They were identified during the competition, collected from the surrounding construction site managed by Jacky Suchail Architectes, and laid out in a precise and regular pattern.
