The order presented a considerable challenge: to construct a multi-occupancy dwelling in the commune of Fenouillet (north-west of Toulouse), an area characterised by a very low building density and stunning mansions set within large plots. The architects responded to this project, which was as ambitious as it was risky, with the clever idea of “building a multi-occupancy dwelling, while creating the impression of a single-family home”. The design therefore envisioned twelve homes in a first building visible from the street, added to which were four individual residences built at the other side of a pedestrian walkway. Viewed from above, the complex gives the impression of a prism, an angular building that appears to have been cut in two, at the heart of which is a shared walkway offering unobstructed views of the surroundings.
While others would undoubtedly have attempted to discreetly blend the project into its surroundings, Taillandier wanted to lend the building a strong and unique identity. In order to break up the monolithic scale of the main building, the architects clad it completely in tiles: Volnay in a traditional shade for the roof cladding and Rully currant red for the façade, with a glazed mat and glossy finish. The highly visible layout, which features a regular alternating pattern, draws graphic diagonals and creates the impression that the building is moving and shimmering. Here we see the tile revealing its full potential: the shadow cast by each tile onto the one below accentuates the illusion of a second skin, like scales on a vermilion shell... The tiles may be red, but the faces of the designers are certainly not!