architect: ATELIER NAOM* (New Architectes Of’ Marseille)

location: Marseille, France

year: 2016

Atelier NAOM*'s Stade du Merlan for the city of Marseille, was born to oppose the concrete massive architecture-bunker typology in favour of a more integrated with the landscape one. Located in a dismissed critical area, the project is composed by semi-underground buildings to provide more public green space to the neighborhood. The program includes sport facilities for football, basketball, athletics, a café, a parking space, a water collector area and a geothermal power generator area.

photo by Atelier NAOM*
photo by Atelier NAOM*

The project has been designed to create a link with the neighborhood and transform it in a unique place for outdoors activities. The fence plates are designed to allow perception and relationship with the urban context instead of isolating and enclose the space itself.  His aesthetic does not address the idea of closure, boundary or barrier between the stadium and the rest of the world. Moreover, from a practical point of view, to use of Corten steel is a sustainable choice because is a resistant, durable and easy to maintain material.

photo by Atelier NAOM*
photo by Atelier NAOM*

Its patina automatically regenerates and its beautiful iridescent shades ranging from orange to brown, evoke the colors of earth, that perfectly fit with the surrounding green flowered hills. The urban furniture has been created site-specific, as well as for the fence, the trees grid until the signage. Every detail was an opportunity to design and opposing the main stream retail standardisation. A small piece of urban poetry participating to the community life improvement, through a tailor-made project for Marseille.

intervention: Ristoration
location: Avenue de l’escadrille, Normandie-Niemen Marseille 13e
client: STB Nord-est, 20 Bd Françoise Duparc 13 004 Marseille
manager (customer): S. Florent Dian
project design: 2013-2014
project construction: 2015-2016
construction timetable: 12 months + 2 training months
completion: may 2016
architect: D. Fluchaire Architect
technical team: J. Cogne (Architect), Artec 64 (economist), Langlois (structural engineering), PLB (climate engineering)
surface: 520 smq
area surface: 18 355 smq
cost: 3 265 000 € (without taxes)