Inca Architectes designed this dome-shaped eco-tourism center that feels like a cozy living room in the woods. Commissioned by the Department Tourism Committee of Seine et Marne to protect the Gorges de Franchard biosphere reserve in Fontainebleau, the center is the first of its kind in France and it’s made of natural materials in order to keep its long-term environmental impact to an absolute minimum.
Gorges of Franchard is so beautiful that the tourism traffic has become overwhelming, so the new eco-tourism center controls traffic at the same time as it provides a warm refuge from the city. Oriented to optimize solar gain and keep the structures warm without undue mechanical help, the center is organized around a reception and exhibition area and a hall where educational activities will be held.
The combination of warm material choices and passive design ensures that visitors to one of France’s most awe-inspiring parks will feel comfortable regardless of the season.
+ Inca Architectes
Via Arch Daily
It looks neat, but I have a question. In addition to using materials from sustainable and non-toxic sources, shouldn’t there also be a goal to minimize the amount of material needed, and to maximize the useful space such that nothing goes to waste?
A lot of these fanciful designs I am seeing look cool, but they also have a lot of wasted space, nooks that become unusable, and thus, extra material that has gone to waste.