LIVING THE RHYTHM

As part of a partnership with Lille City Hall, twinned with Saint-Louis, Senegal, since 1978, this workshop aims to explore a specific climatic and architectural context to understand its dynamics (resources, skills, economy, etc.) and assess the relevance of possible actions. The goal is to immerse oneself in a new environment, discover the key players, identify and analyze local resources, and study existing practices—how and why they are implemented. Titled Learning from..., this workshop places materiality and human relationships at the heart of architectural design.

The Living the Rhythm project was born from the unique atmospheres of the school, the Goxu Mbacc neighborhood, and, more broadly, the city of Saint-Louis, which deeply impacted us during our trips to Senegal in 2023 and 2024. The heat, wind, sand, colors, materials, and morphology of the buildings create a rich context that has become an essential source of inspiration. This immersion allowed us to explore this culture through the lifestyle and housing of Saint-Louisians, particularly thanks to encounters and mediation workshops that we initiated on-site within Bokk, the collective we founded. This school renovation project in Saint-Louis aims to combine reproducibility, densification, and appropriation. It is based on an experimental pedagogical approach, developed in connection with local practices. This results in a variety of spaces with distinct atmospheres, structured by an architectural framework that promotes adaptable and evolving educational methods. The layout is organized around three distinct strips: the first one creates a link with the neighborhood, the second remains open and adaptable, while the third, built and fragmented into several interior sequences, structures the overall composition. This rhythmic design, anchored in its context, enables the creation of a unified yet adaptable public facility, suitable for various schools and environments. The functions were defined by the users themselves. Through a series of architectural and landscaping features, each space offers a unique atmosphere, allowing everyone to freely appropriate it according to their desires, needs, and state of mind.