Paris and Rennes-based architecture studio Lemoal Lemoal Architectes has built a small-scale tennis club by differentiating it with "half-timbered" structural facade elements in Cabourg, France.

The project, named Garden Tennis Club of Cabourg, the 200-square-metre club has been designed with special attention in considering its small scale. The club houses the changing facilities and lavatories of the tennis complex, in order to ensure it harmoniously blends in with its surroundings. 

Even if it is simple in its elongated form, the details make the building blow up. To achieve this, the architects tried to demonstrate the contemporary relevance of half-timbering, a traditional Norman structural principle. 

"This type of construction presents the added benefit of a sustainable reliance on local companies, materials, and skills. Here, the terracotta roof tiles were manufactured in Bavent, a town close to Cabourg," said the studio.

Garden Tennis Club of Cabourg follows the same building principle for the façade as in the half-timbered architecture of Normandy. The architects used the solid wooden beams and studs, characteristic of this structural technique, which are optimized and highlighted by the interplay of volumes. 

The wooden sections are left empty whereas the entire system of waterproofing, insulation, and carpentry are placed inside the structure.

The structure of the building is kept as a water-resistant skin that makes distinct this project. The firm used a double skin, made of exposed polycarbonate, and installed inside the wooden sections, forms a lightbox directly inserted in the structure. 

"The material quality of the translucent polycarbonate surface used in this project ensures consistent luminosity throughout the changing rooms while also increasing its visibility on the site," added the studio. 

"Thus, the wood on the façades is highlighted by the artificial interior lighting."

Axonometric drawing

Plan and elevation

Section

Project facts

Project name: Garden Tennis Club of Cabourg

Architects: Lemoal Lemoal Architectes

Size: 200m2

Location: Cabourg, France.

Date: 2019 

All images © Javier Callejas

All drawings © Lemoal Lemoal Architectes

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