malka architecture clads student housing in gold to create ‘egyptian house’ in paris

studio malka architecture has designed a student housing complex in paris, which houses the egyptian embassy’s reception, cladding it in gold to create what it calls a ‘new identity’ for the country. called the golden city, or la cite d’or, the studio intended to create an emblem of egyptian culture that reflects the diverse fabric of its history whilst also ‘drawing on the roots of a new modernity.’

images courtesy of studio malka architecture

studio malka has created solid superposition of 42 megalithic prefabricated block systems, a physical personalization of each of the nomes of ancient egypt. nomes were the administrative districts of ancient egypt, territorial divisions that functioned as provinces with each one ruled by a nomarch. they included the nome of the white wall (memphis, saqqarah), the nome of scepter (thebes), the nome of the country of nubia (whose principal cities are philae, elephantine, kom ombo), the nome of the fortress (nekhen, el kab) amongst others.

each monolithic block is surrounded by a straight line slightly overhanging from the dwellings to recall the egyptian protodoric abacus. the entrance to la maison d egypte consists of a monumental gate characteristic of egyptian temples. the gate is framed by two moles, thick towers with a rectangular base surmounted by a cornice and a vast lintel, as is customary throughout ancient egypt.

‘we envisage a mutation of the pharaonic era’s architectonic vocabulary,’ the studio explains. ‘these constructive elements are fundamental components of our project, and they have been chosen for their constructive and symbolic forces in the history of this people.’

‘we aim to comprehend la maison d’egypte not as a single building but rather as a functional superposition of territorial pieces, extra-large prefabricated blocks that aggregate and federate among themselves,’ it adds.

‘la cité d’or, the golden city is a definition of a new egyptian identity, at the crossroads of ancient history and contemporaneity, towards a physical, mystical and timeless architecture.’

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project info

studio: malka architecture
project: golden city / la maison d’egypte
location: paris
client: egyptian embassy in france
surface: 5000 m²
budget: 14,6 m€
localisation: cité internationale universitaire de paris
team: studio malka architecture principal architect, associated consultants, mercier
landscape architect, laurent garbit graphist, betom ingénierie, alternative acoustique, sterling quest economistes
state: private competition invitation october 2019