Fab 40: Franklin Azzi, Paris
The small VW vacation house in Normandy is the latest residential work by Paris-based Franklin Azzi Architecture. The house is not only a successful transformation of an old hunter’s hut into a calming retreat blending with the area’s traditional architecture, but is also a very environmentally friendly design.
Harvesting rainwater to cover the owners’ daily needs, the house needs not be connected to the main water systems, while solar and geothermal energy were also incorporated in the design solution. Locally sourced – from a 100km radius distance – and recyclable material were also used throughout.
Set up just in 2006 by Franklin Azzi, the practice is also currently working on several bigger projects, such as the Lille 3000 scheme, transforming Lille’s Saint-Sauveur station area into a vibrant cultural and commercial hub for the city.
The Biscuit House by AU*M Architectes Urbanistes, Lyon
Read the article: AU*M Architectes Urbanistes
Pastries by Camille Lesecq
Read the article: Pastries by Camille Lesecq
Lilas Animation Centre in Paris by Christian Biecher & Associes
Read the article: Christian Biecher & Associes%A
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
La Grand Place, Musée du Cristal Saint-Louis
Read the article: Musée du Cristal Saint-Louis
VW House by Franklin Azzi
Read the article: VW House by Franklin Azzi
Ara dress by Heal Fashion
Read the article: Heal Fashion
Sleeveless Ara dress by Heal fashion
Ara dress detail by Heal fashion
Baby Horse dress by Ara fashion
Odysee dress by Ara fashion
Hotel Ville d'Hiver, Arachon
Read the article: Hotel Ville d'Hiver, Arachon
Das Pop, from Le Mont St Michel
Read the article: Le Mont St Michel fashion
Pap Femme, from Le Mont St Michel
Musée International de la Parfumerie, Grasse
Read the article: Musée International de la Parfumerie
The debut collection by Moustache
Nomiya Restaurant, Palais Tokyo, Paris
Read the article: Nomiya Restaurant
The Hemera by PGO Automobiles
Read the article: PGO Automobiles
Borrowed Treasures by Philippe Rahm at the Musee d'Orsay
Read the article: Philippe Rahm%A
Les Thermes Marins de Cannes
Read the article: Les Thermes Marins de Cannes
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Is this the world’s most comfortable sofa? Cozmo and Pearson Lloyd invite you to find out
Pearson Lloyd and Cozmo lay bare the design process behind ‘Hug’, their new high-backed sofa design, at the eye-opening exhibition ‘Comfort Lab’ during LDF
-
A Mexican clifftop retreat offers both drama, and a sense of place
Casa Yuri, a clifftop retreat by Zozaya Arquitectos, creates the perfect blend of drama and cosiness on Mexico's Pacific Coast
-
Tour David Lynch's house as it hits the market
David Lynch's LA estate is for sale at $15m, and the listing pictures offer a glimpse into the late filmmaker's aesthetic and creative universe
-
‘Landscape architecture is the queen of science’: Emanuele Coccia in conversation with Bas Smets
Italian 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 landmark
Once 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 restoration
Designed 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 architecture
His clever flat-pack structures were 'a little like Ikea before its time.'
-
Eileen Gray: A guide to the pioneering modernist’s life and work
Gray forever shaped the course of design and architecture. Here's everything to know about her inspiring career
-
The Grand Palais is a Parisian architectural feast, emerging from a mammoth restoration project
The Grand Palais reopens, unfurling its spectacular architectural splendour, meticulously restored by Chatillon Architectes – take a tour
-
Surrealist townhouse Villa Junot lights up Montmartre – and it’s for rent
We go inside Montmartre’s Villa Junot, a former composer’s home reimagined by interior design studio Claves, where surrealism meets art deco splendour
-
A Venice sneak peek into the new Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain by Jean Nouvel
A new home for Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain by Jean Nouvel will open later this year in Paris; in the meantime, the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 offered the perfect platform for a sneak preview of what's to come