French Culture Institute in Beijing

Located in the vibrant Sanlitun area of Beijing, this 2300m² existing building required renovation by the workshop in order to accommodate a cinema auditorium, media library, bookshop, exhibition gallery, café, examination and maintenance centre, and also management, promotion and communication offices. A central gallery leads to all functions, visible from anywhere in the space.

For this very contemporary project, representative of a nation, the expression of a culture in terms of spaces and architectural elements requires a clarity of intention and a minimum of abstraction. In an open and refined space, acoustics, lighting, communication and furniture are the major challenges.

Each architectural element is designed following the theme of weaving and folding; a mesh made of steel plate lacquered like a cloud on the ceiling, a blue woven carpet with kinetic effects, steel and wooden furniture.

Accompanied by Julien Masurel and Cheung Pong Yuen, the lab realized the interior architecture, communication and furniture, from design to construction site monitoring. We also helped the client during the call for tenders and the analysis of those tenders.