Bâtiment "Francis Bouygues", Ecole Centrale Supélec

The Francis Bouygues building at Ecole Centrale Supélec houses three research and development department, known as “Univers”, as well as a hotel building for external visitors. The school is arranged over three floors around the green patio and the large connecting hall, recesses and structures mark the entrances. Annette Gigon and Mike Guyer used a city theme to design the Universes as districts, with streets, alleys and squares. The hall, as artificial topography, connects the various work and lounge areas across all levels and creates a continuous and differentiated space with places with differing degrees of openness and concentration. The tectonically delicately structured facade indicates the Universes with different colored ceramic elements. Special glazes in eight colors were developed, each color in two shades – from off-white through anthracite to dark green. Profiles elements – smooth, wavy and fluted – emphasise the horizontal or vertical line of the facade, depending on their orientation, and liven up the three-dimensional effect of the building with slight projections and recesses.