Public / Rennes / 2024

StairTower

A free-standing stair that turns a library entrance into a public lookout over the old town.

Location
Rennes
Year
2024
Height
31 m
Type
Public
Status
Completed
The tower from the square
01

Site

A library needed a way up that did not hide behind a door. We gave the stair its own tower, set apart from the building and open to the street, so climbing it is part of the visit.

Spiral inside the tower
02

Material

Everything is one pour of white concrete: steps, walls and handrails. The boards of the formwork are still printed on every surface, a record of how it was made.

Light on the curved wall
03

Light

A single slot runs up the full height of the tower. The sun moves along the curved wall through the day, so the same stair is never lit the same way twice.