Maison des auteurs, designing writing spaces

In these times of profound questioning about ‘working together’, the Maison des auteurs project, on which work starts in a few weeks' time, provides some inspiration... or breathing space. The 500 m² (5,381.96 ft²) development at 9 rue Ballu (Paris 9th district) is clearly not typical of a conventional tertiary environment: individual ‘monastic’ offices, multi-purpose rooms that can be shared in a single 100 m² (1,076.39 ft²) space, a 60,100 m² (646,911.02 ft²) script room for brainstorming, a podcast studio, a rehearsal room and a basement cafeteria.

Apart from these specific features, the main thing to remember is the close cohabitation of the individual and the collective, the natural transition from isolation, conducive to concentration and creation, to the effervescence of collaboration, the confrontation of scenarios and the fusion of energies. These needs were unanimously expressed before the health crisis by employees of companies in all sectors of activity, and will continue to be in the aftermath.

In terms of method, five workshops during the APS phase with the client, the SACD (Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques, the French Society of Dramatic Authors and Composers) – created by Beaumarchais – refined the programme. The Jardin des Auteurs, on the street side, was designed by landscape architects Idée verte.