The project is located near the city center of Olemps, "new city" of 3,500 inhabitants, located on the outskirts of the agglomeration of Rodez. The site is located in a periurban area made up of architectural objects, built in the 70s and 80s.
The municipality wants a strong architecture, the building was thought of as a monolith, set back from the main street of the village to assert itself and offer a large landscaped area in connection with the existing sports facilities.
The budget allocated to the operation being modest in terms of the ambitions of the project owner, the design of the project was dictated by economic imperatives without ever denying the architectural quality. The result is a compact and functional building of 1000 m² on the ground, a square of 33 × 33 m, without unnecessary traffic. Also, the realization of the library, decided later, was logically integrated into the building freshly delivered to benefit from the volume already built. The volumetry of the building, deliberately simple, consists of a square with rounded corners. It is entirely covered with golden expanded metal, nod to the sunset on Mount Olympus ... By day, this mesh evolves according to the variations of the light, creating kinetic effects, while at night it is illuminated, contributing thus to the animation of the district. The volume is pierced on all four sides to benefit from the views and offer rich relationships with the garden. The awnings, while offering a sunscreen, allow to prolong the uses to the outside: external meals or markets side of activities, meadow for the external concerts side scene, activities in connection with the library for the rooms senior and young .
The auditorium is intended to be an intergenerational meeting, hosting performances as well as dancing meals, weddings ... This great programmatic flexibility required thinking of spaces that are easily evolving, adaptable and easy to appropriate. The plan on the ground floor is organized in two strips; one dedicated to the theater and the other to public reception. In order to complete the cultural offer of the program and make the most of the volume built, the project hosts a library located upstairs with a balcony in the lobby, with a warm and colorful atmosphere.
The aesthetic choices of interior design are related to economic imperatives. The interior atmosphere plays on a warm contrast between materials from industrial vocabulary (collaborating floors apparent, neon tubes ...), wood and bright and colorful colors. In the lobby, technical equipment ceiling are left exposed: heating by radiant panels, ducts, perforated sub-face of the metal tray. Everything is painted in white to form a sober decor, raised by the pink stain of the walls. On the ceiling and on the walls of the auditorium, an acoustic absorbent is fixed and protected from aggression by a siding of wooden planks. Their cutting in the shape of a cloud creates a playful atmosphere, in connection with the events hosted.