In 2023, Les Editions Alternatives published "Le tour des matériaux d'une maison écologique", a book designed by the Anatomies d'architecture collective. In 2024, it was the subject of an exhibition at CAUE Rhône Métropole, supported by Maison de l'architecture de Normandie, Grands Ateliers and Territoires Pionniers. The digital version is available HERE

"Le tour des matériaux d'une maison écologique" recounts the experimental adventure of a group who set themselves the challenge of renovating a traditional house in Orléans using only natural materials (wood, hemp, etc.) found less than 100 km from the building site. The central question posed by this book is how to reconnect housing with its territory?

You can choose to read it from A to Z to discover the project in its entirety, or by chapter, like a dictionary of materials. The authors have chosen a dynamic narrative form, a comic strip and an interview.

This project was nominated for the Équerre d'argent 2022 award in the 1st work category.

For more information click HERE

April 3, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. –ENSA Normandie Documentation Center.

Book presentation, discussion on the theme of dystopia/utopia and book sales

"AI surveillance of privatized housing estates, mega-infrastructure projects, heat islands in the ghettos... Nothing has been mapped out yet! Far from prefabs and reinforced concrete, the city of tomorrow is already teeming, crumbling and pushing back at the same time." Two authors from Normandy, Blanzat and Ariane by their pen names, have contributed to this collection of science fiction short stories, published by La Volte in autumn 2024. At a time of ecological and social backlash, Blanzat and Ariane project themselves politically into the future, using literature to think about the city and architecture of tomorrow.

At the invitation of the seminar Enquête(s) sur la fabrique écologique de l'architecture (DE Expérimentation), these individuals will present their work and discuss the need for science fiction to move beyond dystopia and reinvent a form of critical utopia.

Cover illustration © Hao

Echoes. 50 years of the I Maestri collection" explores the important contribution of the Italian furniture company Cassina to design culture. The faithful reissue, in 1965, of furniture created by Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret subsequently led to the creation of the I Maestri collection, which has continued the process by reissuing iconic pieces by great names in 20th-century architecture. The book also looks back at the company's collaboration with renowned Italian architects such as Franco Albini, Gio Ponti and Carlo Scarpa.

Launched in 2024, the Pôle documentaire's greening project is now a reality. Eloïse and Julien from Jungle In, a plant store in Rouen, delivered and installed around twenty plants on Wednesday January 22. They will embellish and keep our readers company in the reading room. We'll need plant lovers to feed and, above all, water all these little creatures, so don't hesitate to come and see us to offer your services.

Everything you ever wanted to know about the construction site, Fabien Grolleau , himself an architecture graduate, and Clément C. Fabre tell you everything you ever wanted to know about the building site in their comic strip "Le chantier", published in 2024 by Dargaud.

Flora, a young architect, starts her career with the prestigious El Rodrigo firm. She is in charge of managing a major construction site in Barcelona. We follow her in her efforts to solve problems, find solutions, manage the various players on the site and listen to her client.

From December 9 to December 20, 2024, François Schuiten's work will be the subject of an exhibition at the Pôle documentaire. François Schuiten, a Belgian cartoonist and son and brother of an architect, is the author, with Benoît Peeters, of the famous "les cités obscures" series, comic books exploring parallel, retro-futuristic worlds in which architecture is considered the supreme art. Together again, they publish "Revoir Paris", which they describe as a work of anticipation, in which they imagine the Paris of 2156, which they wanted to be plausible, and in which they seek to "reactivate past ideas and projects, mistakenly believed to be outmoded." .

The Pôle documentaire has recently enriched its collection with the acquisition of new comic books.

You can already find our collection of comics in the suggested bibliography HERE

Normandie en poche: are you familiar with this mobile app offering a range of digital services designed to make life easier for students in Normandy? You can now find theENSA Normandie Documentation Center, its opening hours (select "Libraries"), its digital resources, and its ArchiRès catalog (select "Library Services"). You will also have access to the same information for the university library network and the municipal library network.

"Hirayama works as a cleaner in Tokyo's public toilets. He thrives on a simple life and a highly structured daily routine. He has a passion for music, books and trees, which he likes to photograph. His past resurfaces through unexpected encounters. A moving and poetic reflection on the search for beauty in everyday life. Released in 2023, this film by Wim Wenders pays tribute to Japanese filmmaker Yasujiro Ozu. (Editor)

Perfect Days, suggested for purchase by English teacher Zelda Moureu-Vose, is available at the Pôle documentaire. As an added bonus, the main character, a maintenance worker, introduces us to the famous "intelligent" transparent toilets in Tokyo Park, designed by architect Shigeru Ban to the tune of Lou Reed...

The complete list of our audiovisual acquisitions for December can be found HERE

The Documentary Center will be closed to the public from October 28 to November 3, 2024.

Reopening on Monday, November 4, 2024 at 1pm.

Every architecture student knows and uses the expression "je suis charrette" ("I'm a cart"), which is now the title of a comic strip.

Enzo, a young architect who has just graduated, lands his first job with the internationally renowned Paris-based firm Xavier Nolan. He finds himself propelled into the competition for the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCA).

Danicollaterale, the comic book's author and a former architect himself, takes us through Enzo's story, into the hyper-competitive and demanding world of architects.