How an Architect Transformed an Abandoned 7-story Paris Townhouse | Architectural Digest

It's a place that is built on seven levels, which is composed of 1,000 square meters, with volumes that are quite impressive, which was designed for a family. Hello Adé, so I'm Hugo Thoreau, I'm an artist, architect and designer, and today I welcome you to one of the last projects that we have just delivered. So we worked three years on it, and we had two and a half years of work. For me, light is essential, because I can make the best drawings. Without a beautiful light, my project won't come to life. In the whole private hotel, we have a very warm light. The idea is really to create something that is domestic, that you can feel at home. For me, a private hotel, if we talk about the entrance, there is always a slightly majestic side. Here I wanted a room that was very strong, so we drew this lust that we made in Murano, and so it is in massive glass, which is also tinted in the mass, which is as well made of glass as aluminum, and which is 7.5 meters high, and which really gives a verticality and luminosity that will really encompass the whole space, and also allow us to create a homogeneous light before going into spaces that are more private. For me, this living room was first and foremost to create something monumental with a fireplace. I have a passion for fireplaces. Besides, for example, the fireplace was one of the first to come to life, and for me it was really interesting because I attach myself to having elements that are strong in each space, in order to be able to connect them and create, let's say, a certain synergy, a certain positive emulation between the different atmospheres and ambiences. I wanted to create a fireplace that would bring back a certain color and a certain texture, so we created custom pots with one of our artisans, with this slightly greenish color, which is a bit difficult to describe, but really also with this little embossed that will make you think of something, let's say, natural, like a bamboo, but to revisit with all this framing that will be made of aluminum and that will bring back this contemporary side. And then to come and break this rather rigid symmetry that also comes from the existing paneling, with a plantation on the side, with more organic shapes, like all this carpet and the sofa, all this in dialogue with the heritage, with the ground in Versailles Park. The pool is a unique space because it is blind, and we are in an atmosphere that is much more felt, a little more tropical, but with a little side, let's say, boat. And then also this whole idea of ​​a little bath, because we will also have the spa, the hammam, the sauna, and all this around a basin which is quite long, which is 7 meters long, so for an indoor pool in Paris, it is quite pleasant to draw this type of architectural element. I think it makes it a unique piece. The rooftop, just like the pool, it's a bit like two spaces that are a bit separated, that are a bit like bubbles and that allow you to create moments of your own. It is a place that was built in 1911, which was abandoned for 15 years. So how to apprehend it? It is to apprehend it by having a certain freedom, a certain creativity, and then also by using techniques that will be old, such as skating techniques, gilding, but always to have this little twist, let's say more contemporary, and also bring a little touch of fun. So we have pieces that are very marked, which do not necessarily have continuity, temporality, so we can have a lamp that is much more brutal and dates from 2022, than after a bar, let's say Brazilian, from the 70s. And I like to have this mix, because for me too, it's my style. I like to have this travel side, travel notebook, and thus integrate it inside. And in addition, what fascinated me also in this project, is that the client left me even also the direction on the works of art, and even some, I paint them myself, because I am also an artist. It is an abstract painting and at the same time it will recall a mangrove, which will also echo with the shades that we will find in the upper part. And then also here, another that is more figurative. The idea was really to always find this texture and this idea of ​​layer. And it's a bit like if the water came to erase, but always leave a trace. And in fact, I always like this idea of ​​working the trace. Just before entering the parental room, we first arrive in this office, which is a bit of a roundabout, on which we worked on ocher yellow tones, which are quite powerful, with this idea also of ​​circular oculus, which will create this sequence, which will allow to have a certain procession. And it's always something that interests me in there. It's how to go from one transition to the other. Because for me, the job of an architect is the transition between the material and the spaces. And that's something that is always essential in my work. And I like to have the details afterwards, but it's always that. It's this transition. It's like the stairs. The stairs are very important for me. Here, the idea was to create a room that is a bit fun. So we have the bed which is put on a pedestal with two steps to access the bed. And for me, the texture side is very important. And that's also why we worked on fabrics that are stretched, so a mixture of cotton and raffia. We also really pushed the detail with these handles which are drawn on measure and which take up the shape of gazelle horns. All this in massive chains. We also have different furniture that come to play in space, elements that are chained, like the sofa of the Campana brothers, which connects the glass with the carpet which is also drawn on measure. And then it takes us to the bathroom. It's the idea of having a fantasy bathroom with this large bathtub, with this open book in green Onyx from Mexico. And then this work of chaining the doors. All this to create something quite homogeneous. Again, everyone has their own space, everyone has their own identity, but always a conductor. So on the garden, it was a request from the owner to have a little Asian touch. What interested me was to have this a little non-Japanese side that we completely created, and also to have this aquatic dimension. All my projects always start with a drawing. What is quite interesting here is that the curation was total. All the ceramic lamps in the living room are drawn on measure. Then we made them with a ceramic artist. I wanted this large sofa to be very majestic, but what also interests me is to see with what fabric we are going to do it, with what density. And the dining room, we drew this large table which separates in two, which allows that when we have a table, we can be about 14, I think. And then also, when we separate, we can eat 3-4. It's a loop marquetry, which will take up a certain dimension, which will bring back this little contemporary side and which will also make a subliminal message with the room, with the top of the bed. I like to create places that are alive, where we will have accidents, where people will also create moments of life and where I like to highlight the accident.