FONTAINEBLEAU, Campus INSEAD

France

FONTAINEBLEAU, Campus INSEAD

France

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The INSEAD campus is located on the edges of the Fontainebleau Forest. It was built in 1969 on what was once forest land. The original coherence of the campus’s spatial organization, as well as its strong connection with the forest, have been lost over time. We create a park—a vast landscape in which it’s reasonable to wonder if the campus buildings appeared and wove themselves into the space only later. Filled with indigenous plants, the park is a miniaturization: the surrounding forest scaled to the size of the campus. New layers of smaller, closely-planted trees (birch, oak, etc.) complement the ancient oaks and iconic pines. Our ambitious renaturalization creates a new wild and wooded landscape, complete with a dense undergrowth of shrubbery (European hornbeam, dog rose, etc.) and plants (ferns, anemones, grasses, etc.) chosen in harmony with the exposure of each area. Boundless, winding paths of poured concrete and sandstone aggregate meander through the dense vegetation like forest trails. A formal clearing, open but for existing iconic pines, emerges at the heart of this dense, wooded landscape. Equidistant from the campus’s main buildings and in line with the axis drawn between the MBA and Forest Buildings, this central meadow is the meeting point of architecture and landscape. Flat, open, and equipped with portable outdoor furniture, the meadow is ideal for outdoor events and daily student life alike.

 

data
Year:
2019 to 2020
Status:
Study
Program:
Parks, Gardens, Equipments
Client:

Campus de l'INSEAD

Project Team:

MDP Michel Desvigne paysagiste / HdM Herzog & de Meuron