best architects 20

Located near the village of BEX, the sustainable BEX-JARDINS housing project offers 12 residential high mixing typology buildings and 138 dwellings,spread over a vast park of 25,000 sqm.
The initial assignment plan, considered expensive in land resources, was densified to optimise the use of ground and architectural volumes. The total floor area was increased by 40 per cent, respecting the large-scale planning.
The architectural vocabulary is inspired by local materiality and climate. The wooden façade, consisting of sliding, filtering or protective elements with split volumes, articulates the outdoor spaces and interacts both with the mediumsized neighbouring rural buildings and the scale of the majestic landscape.
The diversified typologies – small courtyard houses with staggered levels, courtyard housing, housing/activity surfaces or connectable apartments – integrate the different volumes, responding to the needs of various generations.
The deliberate consideration of lasting and secondary construction elements (such as light walls and façades) offered further potential for building development.
The landscaping consists of private and public gardens, flower meadows surrounded by the buildings, squares of exchange and sharing articulated around a large central orchard and connected by a network of paths that cross the buildings. The garden design and practice ensure social bonds. The project utilises wood central heating, natural ventilation and solar energy as main energy sources.