In the middle of a Parisian block is hidden a small town house and its garden. The house is part of a small residence with a main building (4 storey high) alongside the street. This main building also protects the house from the Parisian street noise. The house is located in a lively district of Paris with many families.

 

The existing house is a patchwork of multiple volumes, with a large artist studio and its beautiful skylight, converted into the main living room of the house. However the house needs a complete renovation inside; the electrical equipment, the paintings etc… are no longer in French standards.

 

In addition the new owners want to enlarge the house by creating an additional floor. According to the urban regulation in Paris, such project is possible.

Our first action was to give the house a volumetric unity by adding an extension that will seat on the main part of the building. And then by playing with the urban regulation, we defined the suitable extension volume with less sun shadow incidence on the land and the neighborhood.

 

Due to the house location, inside the block, it is difficult to have access properly to the site. So to easily build the extension, the main structure will be in prefabricated wood. This light structure will also increase the execution time for the workers and it will have less weight impact on the house existing walls.

 

In order to keep the harmony with the main volume of the house, all the new windows of the extension with their wooden frame will be in the same alignment than the existing one, except the one of the balcony. The extension will be covered with zinc panels, like most of the roofs in the district.