Launching this week at the Maison De La Culture Du Japon à Paris, The Magical House is an exhibition bringing together the work of two international architecture practices; Japanese studio Atelier Bow-Wow and Parisian firm Didier Fiuza Faustino.
The architects, who often explore the theme of habitation in their work, have joined forces to create a ‘magical environment’, presenting inventive and innovative architectural solutions through a series of speculative ‘habitats’. Both practices are well known for their distinctive take on architecture and for this show, they embarked into a thorough research on living conditions in contemporary cities, the fruits of their labour is presented in the show.
Faustino’s contribution, ‘A Home is Not a Hole’, takes the form of a polyhedral object with rounded edges. Sealed tight by a series of translucent walls, the structure doesn’t have a specific function, but acts as an installation open to interpretation, possibly presenting itself as the solution to different habitation requirements, explains the architect. It could be a refuge, a cabin or a transportation method for a single person.
Atelier Bow-Wow's work is named 'Chigi House'. The Japanese team's space is conceived as a social seating area and shelter, resembling the archetypal pitched roof. Through their design the architects hope to initiate social exchange and conviviality between the exhibition’s participants.
Walking into the gallery space, visitors will be plunged into dimmed, ambient lighting that will create a soft and subtle play between shadow, light, sound and silence, creating a serene and poetic atmosphere. Both exhibits are constructed from the same material: a light wood, sourced from Portugal, which will be recycled when the event draws to a close.
The polyhedral structure doesn’t have a prescribed function; instead it is open to the viewer’s interpretation
Atelier Bow-Wow’s ’Chigi House’ is a communal seating area, aiming to initiate social exchange and feelings of conviviality.
INFORMATION
’The Magical House’ will run at the Maison De La Culture Du Japon à Paris until 30 July. For more information visit the centre’s website
Photography: Graziella Antonini
ADDRESS
Maison de la culture du Japon à Paris
01 bis, quai Branly
75015 Paris
-
Discover The Legacy, Hong Kong’s eye-catching new condoThe Legacy, by ACPV Architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel, is a striking new condo tower that aims to ‘create a sense of community and solidarity among people’
-
In BDSM biker romance ‘Pillion’, clothes become a medium for ‘fantasy and fetishism’Costume designer Grace Snell breaks down the leather-heavy wardrobe for the Alexander Skarsgård-starring Pillion, which traces a dom/sub relationship between a shy parking attendant and a biker
-
Tour Aflalo’s first retail space, a gallery-like studio in New YorkLight-filled and elegant, Aflalo has opened its first retail space in a classic Soho loft, reimagined by Nordic Knots Studio
-
This modernist home, designed by a disciple of Le Corbusier, is on the marketAndré Wogenscky was a long-time collaborator and chief assistant of Le Corbusier; he built this home, a case study for post-war modernism, in 1957
-
‘You have to be courageous and experimental’: inside Fondation Cartier’s new homeFondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain in Paris invites us into its new home, a movable feast expertly designed by Jean Nouvel
-
A wellness retreat in south-west France blends rural charm with contemporary concreteBindloss Dawes has completed the Amassa Retreat in Gascony, restoring and upgrading an ancient barn with sensitive modern updates to create a serene yoga studio
-
Explore the new Hermès workshop, a building designed for 'things that are not to be rushed'In France, a new Hermès workshop for leather goods in the hamlet of L'Isle-d'Espagnac was conceived for taking things slow, flying the flag for the brand's craft-based approach
-
‘Landscape architecture is the queen of science’: Emanuele Coccia in conversation with Bas SmetsItalian philosopher Emanuele Coccia meets Belgian landscape architect Bas Smets to discuss nature, cities and ‘biospheric thinking’
-
An apartment is for sale within Cité Radieuse, Le Corbusier’s iconic brutalist landmarkOnce a radical experiment in urban living, Cité Radieuse remains a beacon of brutalist architecture. Now, a coveted duplex within its walls has come on the market
-
Maison Louis Carré, the only Alvar Aalto house in France, reopens after restorationDesigned by the modernist architect in the 1950s as the home of art dealer Louis Carré, the newly restored property is now open to visit again – take our tour
-
Meet Ferdinand Fillod, a forgotten pioneer of prefabricated architectureHis clever flat-pack structures were 'a little like Ikea before its time.'
