Institute for Islamic Culture, site Stephenson, Paris, 2008

The Institute for Islamic Culture, rooted in Paris' 18th ‘arrondissement' and its history, is also a place of ‘radiation' which has a duty to understand and communicate these foreign cultures, to bring them a new look which will enrich and densify the imaginations of locals and Parisians alike. On rue Stephenson as on rue Doudeauville, each floor can be read separately through of gently shifting volumes, suggesting a movement of all facades. The classic system of pillars and beams is replaced in the project by a principle of structural arabesques, arches following gentle curves that intersect non-orthogonally. On the façade, the arches are superimposed on more offset white Corian arches, which creates a game of shifting and relief from inside and outside the building. This mineral and slightly opalescent material (in reference to the alabaster) gives the whole building a diaphanous and mysterious character.