finding neverland
A Parisian design team turn back the clock on an office block, breaking conventions to create an enchanting wonderland for whimsical family living
Among the many quotes by French poet Paul Valéry that adorn the buildings of the Palais de chaillot, there is this one in particular that resonates with the homeowners of a restored building – a former office block turned family residence – a stone’s throw from the famous structures: ‘It depends on the one who passes, if I am tomb or treasure, whether I speak or keep silent, this is up to you, a friend does not enter without desire.’ In those few transcendent lines, scribed decades before the present, Valéry has captured the spirit of modern living, of reinvention and rebirth, of risk and reward and the cohesion of designer and architect. after all, anyone who’s ever embarked on an epic renovation knows how quickly a treasured home can turn into a tomb of troubles.
When gcg architects’s alexandre goulet, noémie Tissier and Jérôme Jacqmin (the homeowner had discovered the Paris-based firm in the pages of a decor magazine) first stepped into the 16th arrondissement building it had all the charm and panache of a run-down office space left to decay – but it matched its sorry state with undeniable potential. Playing out across five levels and a roof that would eventually become the terrace, there was a sense of character to the space just waiting to be revealed, and it was done so with a colour-fuelled dose of Kahloesque fantasy and flair. ‘our mandate was clear: we had to restore the character of the home,’ recalls noémie.
This process was initiated by removing the plaster that was covering the original brick façades, extending four window areas into large bay windows, replacing
‘WE WANTED TO CREATE AN ENCHANTED UNIVERSE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF A TRULY INTERNATIONAL FAMILY’
‘OUR MANDATE WAS CLEAR: RESTORE THE CHARACTER’
the impersonal concrete balconies with graceful black metal ones and reorienting the original staircase (and replacing it with one of raw oak and lacquered steel railings). The sloping roof was also opened up, creating a charming roof terrace. The floor plan was completely revised, too, with private and public areas designated across the different levels to encourage shared and intimate moments that the blueprint lacked before.
‘We wanted to create an enchanted universe to meet the needs of a truly international family,’ says noémie of the interiors. ‘There is mix of style and spontaneity as the homeowner drew on her extensive travels, from Manish arora, Patricia urquiola and India Mahdavi to her visits to India and Morocco.’ nowhere is this more apparent than the grand custom mosaic, playfully called Flight of the Bumblebee, that riffs on the rimskykorsakov melody. What noémie and the team at gcg architects have achieved through the rampant gaiety of tone and texture is a triumph of decorative joie de vivre where each level offers a surprising new twist, from the eclectic assembly of furniture pieces to the alchemic treatment of texture and tone. This then is as much a science of style as it is poetry for the eyes, a true family treasure. and we’re pretty sure Paul Valéry would agree with that.