Nemausus I public housing
Nimes, France · 1987
Photo · Photo by Deidi Von Schaewen
A key precedent for high-tech social housing, demonstrating how industrial materials like corrugated aluminum and external steel stairs can be used to maximize interior space and create open-air circulation.
- What we like about this project
- The use of industrial materials typically reserved for warehouses to construct a residential building.
Materials
- corrugated-aluminum
- galvanized-steel
- concrete
- glass
Visual identifiers
- corrugated-cladding
- external-staircase
- pilotis
- industrial-aesthetic
- access-gallery
Style tags
- high-tech
- industrial
- functionalist
- experimental-housing
Visual tags
- social-housing
- high-tech
- industrial-materials
- elevated-structure
- night-photography
- Geometry
- The building is a long, linear block with a ship-like prow. It features continuous horizontal bands of angled metal cladding that project outward, creating deep, shaded galleries. An external steel staircase system is attached to the long facade.
- Facade system
- Open gallery facade with corrugated metal panels and industrial grating.
- Structural guess
- Concrete columns (pilotis) supporting a concrete frame with lightweight steel and aluminum secondary structures.
- Spatial scale
- Multi-story residential block elevated on pilotis, creating a semi-sheltered ground level.
- Lighting
- Captured at dusk; cool blue ambient sky light contrasts with warm interior spills, red accent lighting under the upper canopy, and bright ground-level security lighting.
- Atmosphere
- A dramatic, machine-like presence at night, softened by glowing red and white lights.
- Environmental context
- Sited along an asphalt roadway with a low-density urban or industrial edge visible in the background.
- Spatial experience
- The building reads as an industrial, elevated vessel. Open-air access galleries wrap the exterior, creating a highly public, exposed circulation path that connects individual units directly to the outside.
- Composition rhythm
- Strong horizontal bands of metal cladding are punctuated by the diagonal rhythm of the external steel staircases.
- Style reading
- High-Tech Industrial Functionalism
- Program
- Multi-family public housing
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture
- Materials
- corrugated-aluminum, galvanized-steel, concrete, glass
- Visual identifiers
- corrugated-cladding, external-staircase, pilotis, industrial-aesthetic, access-gallery
- Style tags
- high-tech, industrial, functionalist, experimental-housing
- Visual tags
- social-housing, high-tech, industrial-materials, elevated-structure, night-photography
- Geometry
- The building is a long, linear block with a ship-like prow. It features continuous horizontal bands of angled metal cladding that project outward, creating deep, shaded galleries. An external steel staircase system is attached to the long facade.
- Facade system
- Open gallery facade with corrugated metal panels and industrial grating.
- Structural guess
- Concrete columns (pilotis) supporting a concrete frame with lightweight steel and aluminum secondary structures.
- Spatial scale
- Multi-story residential block elevated on pilotis, creating a semi-sheltered ground level.
- Lighting
- Captured at dusk; cool blue ambient sky light contrasts with warm interior spills, red accent lighting under the upper canopy, and bright ground-level security lighting.
- Atmosphere
- A dramatic, machine-like presence at night, softened by glowing red and white lights.
- Environmental context
- Sited along an asphalt roadway with a low-density urban or industrial edge visible in the background.
- Spatial experience
- The building reads as an industrial, elevated vessel. Open-air access galleries wrap the exterior, creating a highly public, exposed circulation path that connects individual units directly to the outside.
- Composition rhythm
- Strong horizontal bands of metal cladding are punctuated by the diagonal rhythm of the external steel staircases.
- Style reading
- High-Tech Industrial Functionalism
- Program
- Multi-family public housing
- Perspective
- Exterior Facade
- Discipline
- architecture