Les Bogues du Blat

Ardèche, France

Patrick Bouchain, Loïc Julienne and Sébastien Eymard / Construire

architects, Paris

Building and living in a chestnut forest

In the heart of the Ardèche mountains, the village of Beaumont (population 232) comprises several hamlets scattered over a preserved landscape of chestnut groves and terraced farms. To welcome new families, the mayor has decided to offer an alternative form of ecological and affordable housing adapted to the rural context and to the needs of young families of modest means.

Thus the Bogues du Blat were born: hut-like houses perched on stilts on a slope, built using a budget usually allocated to social housing. To respond to changes in family structure and resources, the residents can gradually extend their home inside the arched roof, with the help of a trainer. The architects and the mayor have created the conditions for new ways of inhabiting a rural area.

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photographs : © Loïc Julienne