Saint-Maur

Axel Schoenert architectes has been commissioned to restructure the former headquarters of the Margiela  fashion house at 163 rue Saint-Maur in Paris's 11th arrondissement. The L-shaped building complex is set for a facelift in this highly mixed urban, social and cultural district.

The project aims to enhance the building's architecture through the use of greenery and the use of voids. The aim is to improve the living environment for future users, while enhancing the role of nature in the city and the many benefits it brings to the urban environment (biodiversity relays, cool islands, etc.). To achieve this, the project involves the creation of new vegetated surfaces, with an accessible terrace on the 3rd and 4th floors, and a patio on the first floor featuring a variety of vegetation adapted to the sunshine. This vertical garden is complemented by the creation of a contemporary 3-storey ground-floor extension in place of one of the courtyard buildings.

The project also aims to respond to new environmental issues and standards by obtaining various certifications and drastically reducing energy consumption.