Espace Chevalier – Arts & Crafts Studio

The first two arcades of this new development designed to showcase trade and crafts are situated opposite the Opera Bastille in Paris, and are intended to be the crowning elements in the project.

Wood and stone, traditionally the ‘noble’ materials of architecture, are employed in the façade and have enabled Olivia de Pazzis Hanemian and AIM Hanemian Architects to create an effect of warmth while at the same time using metal. The mezzanine is reached by a staircase in wood with metal wire railings like a ship’s deck welcoming us on board for a luxurious cruise.

The floor surface is in wood and bluish black slate designed to create the same feeling of harmonious elegance.

As Paris local planning regulations ruled out any contact with the existing vaults, an interior metal framework is an alternative utilization of the volume and serves as an ideal space in which to display carpets.

In this ship-like design the two commercial activities of the Espace Chevalier, creating new carpets and restoring antique wall hangings, have thus found their perfect setting.