André Malraux Media Library
Béziers, France
BÉZIERS MÉDITERRANÉE
Architect: WILMOTTE & ASSOCIÉS
Associate architect: PIERRE-FRANÇOIS MOGET
Engineer: INGÉROP
Facades: ARNAUD DE BUSSIERE ET ASSOCIÉS
Cost consultant: DAVIS LANGDON FRANCE
Sustainable development: JPR CONSEILS & ENVIRONNEMENT
Acoustics: XU ACOUSTIQUE
Signage : ENT DESIGN
Landscaper: INGÉNIEURS ET PAYSAGES
8,000 sqm
Parking: 2,300 sqm
2008
Construction and interior fittings of the new media library in Béziers, including a multimedia space, an auditorium, an exhibition room, a brasserie and a car park.
A unifying building in the new urban space, the media library is a contemporary building that performs well in terms of sustainable development.
The André Malraux media library, located on the former barracks, contributes to reinforcing the intellectual centre of the town, which was built around the former Champ de Mars. Its simple volumetry is set in proportion to the different elements that make up the site. The building is composed of three monoliths of stone and glass, with 4 levels for the central body and 3 levels for the two lateral bodies. The building is organised around an interior void: the patio, responding to the exterior and public space of the square. The main access to the media library is in the axis of the site at the level of the square. The low, full-height glazed ground floor invites the public to enter the hall through its transparency, and offers views from the square into the building and onto the planted patio.
The reflection on the atmosphere is accompanied by a high environmental quality approach to the thermal behaviour of the building and its energy consumption.