Relax, it’s not a real armadillo. The hulking silver structure that now fills the inside of a city block in Paris is the new home to the Pathé Foundation. But this glistening, sinuous roofline sure makes it seem as though the structure’s architects, the Renzo Piano Building Workshop, just dropped a huge creature in the middle of the City of Lights.
The oblong shape isn’t just for looks. Piano and company specifically designed the new building to adhere to the property’s strict requirements, while also allowing enough daylight to hit the neighbours’ windows. And as the photos of the nearly complete project show, it does so gracefully.
There’s no shortage of sunlight inside either, thanks to a system of metal screen panels that conceal a glass skin.
That means the Pathé office space is bright as day. And much, much more beautiful than your office. Unless, of course, you happen to work in the New York Times Building, another Renzo Piano-designed office space.
The building also includes space for permanent and temporary exhibitions as well as a 70-person screening room. Unlike the New York Times Building, however, it does not enable urban explorers to climb the façade. Quite frankly, it looks spectacular enough from the ground. [Enzo Piano Building Workshop via Designboom]
All photos by Michel Denancé, images via Renzo Piano Building Workshop