Unique and Unexpected Design in Paris: Hermes Boutique in a Swimming Pool by RDAI

Hermes Boutique was designed by RDAI and is a conversion of the Lutetia swimming pool located in the heart of the Saint-Germaindes- Prés quarter of Paris, France. According to the architects, the project led by Denis Montel and the teams at RDAI mixes contrasts and complementarities. It was imagined more in terms of volume than surface area, in m3 more than in m2. In the end, it is an intervention both radical and astonishingly gentle.

The project has a double aim. First of all to respect, conserve and reinterpret the architecture of the swimming pool. The only important modification was the covering of the pool by means of concrete composite floor slab supported by a light structure. Underneath, the pool has been integrally preserved. The facade, giving onto the rue de Sèvres, has kept its original appearance. In such a volume, the lighting is crucial. The entire space is bathed in natural light that penetrates through the three large skylights above the atrium, softened only by a metal screen.

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