A joyful monolith. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
09/04/2021.
[Marseille] France
metalocus, GONZALO GARCÍA MORENO
metalocus, GONZALO GARCÍA MORENO
In the new Euroméditerranée district, which emerged in search of a profound urban renewal in the city of Marseille, the architecture studios Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes have collaborated on the project and subsequent construction of the new Antoine de Ruffi school.
The school has 22 classrooms and common areas with friendly and warm finishes, and its exterior is built through a large volume sculpted in light concrete that is drilled generating openings through which light enters and a large colonnade on one of its sides.
The school has 22 classrooms and common areas with friendly and warm finishes, and its exterior is built through a large volume sculpted in light concrete that is drilled generating openings through which light enters and a large colonnade on one of its sides.
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Site plan. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Ground floor plan. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
First floor plan. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Section. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Street constructive section. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Court constructive section. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Axonometry. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Interior axonometry. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Installations axonometry. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
Construction. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
Construction. Antoine de Ruffi School Group by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes. Photograph by Luc Boegly
The building designed by the Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes studios acquires through its massive construction in white concrete an aspect of a monumental character that makes it stand out in the dense developing district in which it is located and wherein the surrounding area the construction of buildings close to twenty floors is expected.
In contrast to the sober construction of its exterior, the interior spaces are developed in a warm and colorful way through materials such as alpine wood that are used in soft curves that give the space a welcoming character. In addition, inside the building all the furniture and space are ergonomically designed based on the children who inhabit it, seeking to facilitate their learning.
In contrast to the sober construction of its exterior, the interior spaces are developed in a warm and colorful way through materials such as alpine wood that are used in soft curves that give the space a welcoming character. In addition, inside the building all the furniture and space are ergonomically designed based on the children who inhabit it, seeking to facilitate their learning.
Description of project by Tautem Architecture and BMC2 Architectes
In Marseille, at the entrance to the new and rapidly developing Euroméditerranée district, the firms of TAUTEM Architecture and BMC2 Architectes deliver the Antoine de Ruffi school group.
Housing 22 classroom and common areas, this mineral monolith features strict geometry and spectacular volumes.
Its light-colored concrete façades are sculpted, and the openwork of this thickness forms a colonnade on the port side and a grand staircase on the city side, creating the interplay of light and shadow in its embrasures. In contrast to the building’s envelope, the interiors are warm and comfortable thanks to the use of color and wood.
A remarkable site
The Antoine de Ruffi school group occupies a strategic spot between the entrance to the new Méditerranée district, and its “inhabited park” coordinated by the urbanist Yves Lion. Its situation offers, on one hand, a view over the developing suburban fabric, with scattered warehouses, silos, soap factories, large-scale housing estates from the 1970s, and in the distance, the Massif de l’Etoile. The reverse view, towards the west, one sees the port and its huge ships, the towers by Zaha Hadid and Jean Nouvel, as well as the continuous sweep of the highway viaduct.
Sculpted monolith
At first glance, this monolith combines massiveness and minerality. The monumentality is the condition guaranteeing its existence in this dense district where high rise apartment buildings (up to 17 stories) are slated for construction. The architects have voluntarily limited the number of architectural and technical components to guarantee simplicity and longevity and to ensure easy maintenance. Built with “low carbon,” light-colored concrete, between the pearl white blanc and beige of the coquina sand (dear to Pouillon), the building was poured in place and without joints. The painstaking work of the “skin” has produced alternating parts of coquina and smooth, mat and shiny surfaces and an interplay of light and shadow in the embrasures.
Bio-climatic design: façades adapted to their exposure
The façades play a protective role. With a thickness of 100 cm, they are the result of a “double wall”, a process of simultaneous pouring of two veils of concrete between which a rigid form of insulation is inserted. They combine thermal performance and massiveness to the two mineral façades. In their thickness, the deep embrasures placed here provide the interior with useful voids for installing storage, work stations and fluid circulations.
Placing ourselves at the height of children
The challenge of designing a school for children ages 3 to 11 is to ensure that they love to go to school and that they find the learning environment both as welcoming and protective as one expects of such an institution. The ergonomics, the comfort and the attention of taking into account the height of children guided the overall design work all the way down to the slightest details.
Joyful and luminous interiors
To create surprise and contrast with the minerality of the envelope and always in this Mediterranean style, the interior feels joyful and colorful. The softness of curves and the use of wood enabled this children’s universe, warm and enveloping. This wood, bio-sourced larch from the Alpes, was used with restraint, for the major walls covered in wood paneling and glazed between the class rooms and circulations and for built in furnishings.
More information
Architects
Lead architect.- Tautem Architecture. Associate architect.- BMC2 Architectes.
Collaborators
Structure.- BEST Portefaix. M&E Engineer.- Elithis. Environmental consultants.- Even Conseil. Acoustics.- Gui Jourdan. External Works.- Seri. Soil decontamination.- Ekos. Scheduling, Piloting & Coordinating.- Alpha i Eco. Economist.- Dicobat.
Client
Client.- Euroméditerranée. Owner.- Ville de Marseille.
Area
4,150 sqm.
Budget
€ 10,500,000.
Dates
Competition.- 2017. Construction.- January 2021.
Location
Rue Urbain V, 2 - 13002. Marseille, France.
Photography
Arnaud Bical, Laurent Courcier, Yannick Gourvil, Eric Hardy. BMC2 Architectes
BMC2 is an architecture and urban planning studio managed since 2001 by Arnaud Bical and Laurent Courcier. They were joined in 2016 by architects Yannick Gourvil and Eric Hardy. The agency studies and produces equipment, houses and offices (new projects or reforms) according to the urban and landscape context in which they are inserted.
With a compact, consistent, and inventive team of engineers and landscapers, they seek to "answer the question posed." After an analysis of the request and all its material and mental context, the image and the use are worked on in an inseparable way. Each project is specific, both autonomous and contextual. However, recurrences go through them: clarity of figures, simplicity of volumes, constructive rigor, quality of materials, attention to the place, to the interior environments, to the people, to the routes, to the light, technical and maintenance simplicity.
His awards include: Great Silver Medal from the Academy of Architecture - Prix Dejean in 2009, exhibition at the Venice International Architecture Biennale - France Pavilion in 2016 and nomination for the Prix de l'Equerre d'Argent 2016 and Selection for the Mies Van der Rohe award 2017 for the Frontignan media library.
With a compact, consistent, and inventive team of engineers and landscapers, they seek to "answer the question posed." After an analysis of the request and all its material and mental context, the image and the use are worked on in an inseparable way. Each project is specific, both autonomous and contextual. However, recurrences go through them: clarity of figures, simplicity of volumes, constructive rigor, quality of materials, attention to the place, to the interior environments, to the people, to the routes, to the light, technical and maintenance simplicity.
His awards include: Great Silver Medal from the Academy of Architecture - Prix Dejean in 2009, exhibition at the Venice International Architecture Biennale - France Pavilion in 2016 and nomination for the Prix de l'Equerre d'Argent 2016 and Selection for the Mies Van der Rohe award 2017 for the Frontignan media library.
Adrian Garcin, Dominique Delord. TAUTEM Architecture
Led by Adrian Garcin and Dominique Delord, TAUTEM Architecture is committed to responding to public and private requests with a close and constant team of partners (engineers, landscapers, etc.). Since its creation in 1989, TAUTEM has not stopped developing projects of a very diverse scale, covering both the built space and the development of outdoor public spaces, within the framework of public order or private construction markets. After a synthetic analysis of the program, the team works inseparably on form and use. Each project is studied as a singular object, both autonomous and contextual.
However, certain principles are constant: adaptation to the place, clarity of figures, simplicity of volumes, constructive rigor, rationality of the plant and routes, quality of materials, attention to interior atmospheres and spatialities, natural light and solar protection. Sensitized from the beginning to environmental issues related to urban space, TAUTEM is committed to the design of sober buildings, limiting energy consumption and using both healthy and sustainable materials.
However, certain principles are constant: adaptation to the place, clarity of figures, simplicity of volumes, constructive rigor, rationality of the plant and routes, quality of materials, attention to interior atmospheres and spatialities, natural light and solar protection. Sensitized from the beginning to environmental issues related to urban space, TAUTEM is committed to the design of sober buildings, limiting energy consumption and using both healthy and sustainable materials.
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