Espace Vert – Château de Saint Ferriol
Intervention to historic town centre – Languedoc
An EU funded ‘Espace Vert’ for the village at Saint Ferriol, Aude France. In conjunction with the Mairie, our clients, the owners of the historic Château in the Cathar region of Langue-d’Oc, commissioned a 3d BIM model, with a design proposal, to kick-start discussions of the possibilities, in the community and local government.
Originally fortified with four bastions, the North-Western one is missing, but its foundations probably remain buried. It is anticipated that Batiments de France will welcome an historicist intervention, not only to create a new public calvaire-exterior chapel, but also to introduce IT and PV technology to the medieval village. A technology ‘totem’, is juxtaposed with the new meditative space and grotto.
Design Intentions
• Enlarge the public space at the heart of the village, adjacent to the church’s entrance
• Provide more privacy for the calvaire, relocated within a partly enclosed, public niche – the footprint of the bastion – and shaded from strong sunlight by the relocated trees.
• Provide a small sheltered space within the niche, for people gathering for functions and events at the church.
• New communication technology public use (a computer and sceen) powered by PVs – the blue technology ‘totem’.
• A fire hose-reel for emergency use in the village (adajacent to the position of the old well, indicated on the 1824 plan)
• Promote archaeological interest and activity by rediscovering the footprint of the lost fourth bastion
Site Supervision
In association with German Architect Arno Schützendorf, we supervised external works, associated electrical services and lighting, and the installation of storm drainage, to complete the hard and soft landscaping to the dramatic courtyard.
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