City block / Society Opera

Location :  Boulevard des Italiens, Paris IXème
Architect :  Basselier Jarzaguet Architectes
Client :  AXA Real Estate – NBIM
Package :  Verrière architecturale
Scope :  Conception et suivi de réalisation
Date :  2020-2022

Construction of a glass roof at the heart of a city block on the Grands Boulevards

This ambitious project is part of the restructuring of a large and impressive building constructed in 1913 by architect Edouard Arnaud. Richly decorated in classic post-Haussmanian style, the building stands out along the Grands Boulevards. At the centre of the city block, the creation of a vast glass roof has enhanced the centre of the building by bringing in light.

The geometric principal imagined for the roof consists of integrating as discretely as possible the gutters and rainwater drainage to the edges. The steel structure folds the roof into origami-like pleats of ridges and valleys above the courtyard. The framework is made in built-up sections whose upper and lower edges are visible, while the rafters between the glazing are as discrete as possible so as not to distract from the large triangular glazed panels.