Concrete House

Location: Chapet (France)
Area: 75 m² (807 SF)
Date: 2010
Client: Private
Structural: SETEC bâtiment
Status: Unbuilt

This addition to an existing house was designed mostly for books. We pushed the idea far enough so that book shelves would actually become structure and enclosure. Two standard units (one for bearing walls, one for roof) prefabricated in high strength concrete are bolted together on site and make up 50% of the building’s enclosure. Every other wall & roof unit is thermally insulated (the other ones are doubly glazed) to provide a right balance between natural lighting and thermal performance. High strength concrete allows for thicknesses down to 2cm for standard units, contributing to an overall sense of lightness.