Children's Toy Library in Bonneuil sur Marne, France by LAN Architecture

The Bonneuil-sur-Marne children''s toy library is a public building as well as a play space for children. The project produces an opposition between monumentality and the need for a warm, friendly environment within the same building.

It is located in an area where 1960''s social housing has had a strong physical and social impact. The exterior and interior spaces are designed to respect the dual nature of the building. The monolithic shell-like elevations are closely linked to the surrounding urban context. The architectural approach: towards a shell-like solution.

The design of the Bonneuil-sur-Marne children''s toy library resulted from an approach that aimed to simultaneously resolve a number of problems and develop new ideas:
- New use for an existing building
- Design of a children’s play area
- Creation of a small-scale public facility in a socially unstable area occupied by large housing complexes
- The difficulties of a very restricted budget (initially, the programme simply called for a new interior layout)

The strategy was inspired by a medical logic of intervention. The creation of an additional freestanding skin allowed the architects to control the interfaces between exterior spaces, building and interior spaces, as well as meet the need to provide generous volumes.

The result is a volume that seems to have always existed and whose bunker-like appearance is reminiscent of a vernacular construction.

Architects: LAN Architecture
Client: Bonneuil sur Marne local authority
Team: Cabinet MTC (all-trades engineers)
Budget: US $1,120,000
Constructed Area: 380 sqm
Photographs: Jean-Marie Monthiers