A forest-like crossing of a Parisian block, on a slab

When the Îlot Maillol building complex was reconfigured, the service yards at its center were joined together to form a passageway open to the public. Like the scenic backdrop animating a theater stage, a curtain of trees and greenery runs along the middle of this new, narrow pedestrian promenade lined with shops. This miniature forest, dense yet easily negotiable, grows above an underground parking lot. This limits topsoil depth, calling for creative solutions at ground level: low mounds of earth are shaped to provide the fertile soil necessary to sustain the forest plants. The topography is precisely engineered to direct surface water runoff flow toward the planted softscape. Oak, maple, and birch trees, already strikingly vibrant at installation, engage in conversation with the high-relief cardboard forest by visual artist Éva Jospin, tucked inside a covered access way into the space.