SCIENCES PO
Moreau Kusunoki completes the central Pavilion of Sciences Po’s new urban campus as part of the school’s “Cœur 2022” project, redefining the typology of the contemporary urban campus in the delicate built fabric of central Paris.
As part of the conversion project developed in partnership with Wilmotte & Associés and heritage architect Pierre Bortolussi, Moreau Kusunoki focused on the contemporary extensions, namely the Pavilion and the main courtyard in relation to the underground library.
THE URBAN CAMPUS, A PLACE OF TRANSPARENCY
Defying the trend of the exodus of urban campuses away from city centres into sub- urban locations, Sciences Po’s intervention “Cœur 2022” consciously implements itself in the historic Hôtel de l’Artillerie at the very heart of the Rive Gauche in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. Surrounded by numerous governmental, cultural and long-standing educational institutions, Sciences Po physically and symbolically oc- cupies the intersection of the political and academic hearts of Paris.
A SCHOOL OF GLOBAL OUTREACH
The Pavilion houses student study and work spaces along its upper floors, and a cafeteria on the ground and underground floors. Both levels open directly onto the outside are are internally linked through the stepping surface. The court is excavated amphitheatrically, allowing the Pavilion’s ground floor to open onto a terrace, while the underground level spills out onto the garden. The excavated space is surround- ed along the remaining sides by research spaces to the east, the new library to the south, and a temporary exhibition space to the west.
A TIMELESS AESTHETIC
In its play with different nuances of grey — the grey of the concrete, of the steel, of the skies of Paris as reflected in the glass — the project creates a universal and timeless aesthetic, free of superficial expressive acrobatics. It brings out the honest and raw beauty of the slabs, the columns and the volumes, all in harmony with the dignified and sparsely decorated architecture of the heritage buildings.
