Scenographic Huts, Briançon Building, Hautes-Alpes Architecture, Neiges de Culture Design

Scenographic Huts Briançon : Neiges de Culture Building

Briançon Architecture, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur design by Hérault Arnod Architectes, France

4 May 2012

Scenographic Huts

Hautes-Alpes department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region, southeastern France

Design: Hérault Arnod Architectes

Serre-Chevalier

At the request of Isabelle de Beaufort, we have created a stage set for her “Neige de Culture” project on the Serre-Chevalier ski slopes. The aim of “Neige de Culture” is to provide themed cultural itineraries on subjects such as the history of the Romans in the Alps or from Vauban to Briançon.

The stories that unfold during these itineraries are underpinned by stage scenery elements such as huts, totem poles and triangulation rocks. These are all unusual objects, and also identical in order to create a specific identity that is easy to pick out in the landscape. They constitute the landmarks that punctuate the different themed stages of the itineraries and create a link between the cultural project and the landscape in which they are embedded and embodied.

images : Hérault Arnod Architectes

The huts are open structures, which suggest interiority whilst remaining outdoor spaces that can be skied into and through. Each of them identifies a stage of discovery and contains 3 totem poles or exhibition boards. The huts are made of a succession of parallel multiply timber arches that generate an organic structure. They all have the same shape, but their appearance varies with their location. They mimic their environment, white at the top of the slope, where snow dominates ; untreated larch closer to the forests. The huts are light constructions which etch shadows in the snow. They look opaque or transparent, depending on the angle of view.

images : Hérault Arnod Architectes