Media center La Marque in Ennevelin
Renovation and extension of a squared farmhouse to create a cultural facility incorporating a media library, entertainment areas and a dance studio.
DESIGN TEAM
Pierre Audat & Associates – Representative
KLV2D – architect associate
Orizhomme – landscaper
Khéops – BET
Photography © Cyrille Weiner
South of Lille, the population growth in town centers encourages the creation of local facilities such as La Marque Page. Supported by the municipality of Ennevelin, this cultural facility combines four types of public-access buildings: a multipurpose hall, a dance studio, educational workshops, and a media library. The challenge of the design was to accommodate all these needs within the property boundaries of a former “ferme au carré”—a traditional square-shaped farm with four wings surrounding a courtyard.
Although trapezoidal and narrow, the courtyard remains the heart of the composition. More than just a large patio, it fully embraces its role as an open-air space, as numerous windows allow users to move fluidly between the interior and exterior.
The new roofs bordering the courtyard reveal the subtlety of the contemporary intervention. Designed to create an impluvium-like effect, the sloping roofs incline toward the courtyard. As a result, the structure of the surrounding porticos features tall posts near the old facades of the farm.
The strength of this heritage convinced us of the need to save its most outstanding features and maintain the organization around the central courtyard.
Excerpt from the article by journalist Christophe Hespel, published in issue No. 294 (March 2021) of AMC magazine.
“The tightly spaced wooden framework evokes the orderly design of Cistercian cloisters. Continuing this allegory, the consultation area, much like a chapter house, opens directly onto the central courtyard.
The paradox of the project lies in its dual mission: to draw from the existing structure while also revealing it. The contrast of materials embodies this duality. The roughness of the brick is set against the smooth flatness of metal cladding, and the white-jointed masonry contrasts with the crumpled folds of zinc.
The light tone of the zinc cladding casts iridescent reflections onto the interior ceilings, which take on golden hues from the window frames. This harmonious color palette seems to converge in the variety of shades found in the paving. However, the “tone-on-tone” effects never overshadow the essential contrast between the old materials and the large white surfaces of the contemporary addition. This reflects the respectful dialogue established between the historic structure and the modern intervention.”
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