seine design’s steel and glass floating restaurant and dance hall, rosa bonheur sur seine, sits on the paris’ stunning landmark river. the project’s spatial opening gives access to the prestigious setting, and located by the pont alexandre III, the building dialogues with historical places: the eiffel tower, the grand palais and place de la concorde. 

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

 

 

seine design’s take on the facades is a tribute to the parisien architecture of the nineteenth century. working with steel and glass as a uniform ensemble, the designers generated an extremely transparent volume, generous in light and views. the sleek, open plan enlarges the space’s volume, also achieved by removing the two original rotundas. 

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

 

 

measuring 40m long and 14m wide, the oval space is divided into a main level and a terrace. the main level is accessible by three bridges from the mainland, adding to the project’s experience. the rigorous yet continuous geometry is an architectural response to the very open site, which gives integrates surrounding landscape. 

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

 

 

light adds a fundamental dimension to the interiors. the skeleton with multiple glass tiles induces a reflection on the dynamic transparency of the construction. the immersive experience references the original ‘guinguettes’, or historically popular drinking establishments that turned into dance halls, in france and its suburbs. 

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

 

 

like the original guinguette, moved to another site on the seine, the new building has a single space that seine design deliberately organized. everything was thought according to the scenic setting, the focus of the project. therefore, an opening was added behind the bar, that adds enchantment and depth to the perspective. 

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

seine design floats 19th-century inspired glass restaurant over famed parisian river

 

 

project info:

 

project name: rosa bonheur sur seine

design: seine design 

location: pont alexandre III, seine river, paris, france

 

 

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

 

edited by: lynne myers | designboom