The Fort of Issy-les-Moulineaux is one of the sixteen detached forts of the Thiers enclosure, built to protect Paris in the latter half of the 19th century. Located in Hauts-de-Seine, its unique position is both insular and commanding, offering sweeping views over the city within a meticulously designed natural landscape.
This preserved neighborhood, now transformed into a residential eco-district emblematic of the “nature in the city” philosophy, stands out for its separation from the dense and noisy urban core while remaining highly accessible and surrounded by public amenities and spaces that foster community life and urban vitality.
The creation of the Aquazena sports and swimming center, designed with Feng Shui principles, addresses a triad of goals: social cohesion, athletic excellence, and recreational enrichment. The center aspires to bring the community together around an inviting, versatile, and inclusive facility.
Situated on a compact site bordered by residential buildings, the project seamlessly combines swimming with team sports, fitness training, squash, and wellness, including a hammam and sauna. The design emphasizes verticality, creating a structure that reaches upwards to embrace views, light, and the sky while activating the rooftop as a functional and vibrant space. The building is envisioned as a vertical extension of the public realm, with the rooftop emerging as its defining feature: a lively, attractive planted outdoor solarium with panoramic views of the Eiffel Tower, directly accessible via a gently sloping promenade from the indoor pool area. This rooftop serves as a nexus between earth, sky, and water, a versatile and cherished space, especially beloved by residents during the summer months.
The journey through the building unfolds across multiple levels. Squash courts are strategically located in the basement, while the pool hall and its changing facilities occupy the ground floor. The fitness center and cafeteria are positioned on the first floor, offering a belvedere perspective over the water features, and the solarium crowns the second floor above the pool hall. This vertical extension enhances the facility’s functionality while offering a dynamic and scenic experience.
The swimming pool hall is a holistic space made of architectural concrete coloured cobalt blue illuminated by glass panels on the roof, which cast zenith light on the stainless-steel hulls that hold the water below. Openings in the façades and roof, along with perforated interior walls, dissolve the rigidity of the rectangular geometry, adding spatial depth and enabling the creation of more intimate alcoves where visitors can sit and unwind after their swim.
The different functions (changing rooms, showers, spa) are organised in curved floating bubbles within the spatial continuum of the course. The climax of the itinerary is the swimming pool hall, which achieves a total contrast with the rest of the project due to its amplified volume and its luminous, aural, olfactory, sensory and visual qualities. The project’s material palette is defined by the harmonious contrast between cobalt-blue concrete and the deep red wood that frames the windows, forms the undulating beams of the façades, and shapes the solarium seating and benches.
Status: Built
Location: Paris, FR
Firm Role: Architect
Additional Credits: Photos credits: Hélène Binet