dominique coulon's conservatoire of music in belfort features patterned façades

dominique coulon applies paint splatters to the conservatoire of music
image © eugeni pons
all images courtesy of dominique coulon & associes

strasbourg-based studio dominique coulon & associes has recently inaugurated the opening of the conservatoire of music, dance, and the dramatic arts in belfort, named after the late french composer henri dutilleux. the concrete monolith sits as a solid mass opposite the site of the famed lion statue that represents the city’s resistance to intruders. from the solid mass, voids have been created by cutting openings, pushing and pulling the planes of an established grid to create the various rooms hosting two auditoriums, a theater, a large dance room, a library, classrooms, administrative offices and a variety of studios.

taking second stage to a row of trees at the property line
image © eugeni pons

the exterior, left as exposed concrete, has been covered in a pollock-esque skin of two-tone blue paint splatters that almost completely change the nature of the concrete facades. fenestration is carefully designed to control light and views to the appropriate spaces. the cantilevered dance studio at the top floor contains the largest window pointed directly at the adjacent monument, accepting plenty of natural light. in the main lobby, the visitor is somewhat removed from the surrounding site as openings are positioned higher up on the walls.

image © eugeni pons

a light box hangs from the ceiling disseminated a soft glow of daylight throughout the interior, and the library seems to almost hang above this space. each private studio contains a unique character and quality of light and sound, personally designed to provide the optimum acoustics and light for specific instruments. the volumes that make up the structure respond to one another creating a three dimensional puzzle of space with dynamic relationships. at the center of the rooftop a void creates a courtyard of inverted color schemes that brings light into the central rooms.

sunken windows’ sills angle to catch sunlight
image © eugeni pons