Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

La nueva piscina olímpica de Tourcoing ocupa una posición estratégica en el centro de la ciudad, cerca de la Place de l’Hôtel de Ville… Hemos diseñado un edificio en el que sus fachadas expresan la metáfora del agua a través de un juego de reflejos y de la modulación de la materia. La cubierta del edificio se compone de paneles de aluminio pulido tratados con un patrón de perforaciones y elementos de soporte en relieve. Estos paneles siguen las variaciones de los volúmenes del edificio por medio de matices de grises y ocres, con tonos que varían de acuerdo a la orientación y al nivel donde se encuentran.

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Model

“A diverse landscape of pure forms and large sheets of light that illuminate the city”

Tourcoing’s new Olympic swimming pool occupies a strategic position in the city centre near the Place de l’Hôtel de Ville (City Hall square), opening onto a ribbon of greenery on the South-West and onto a large set-back space forming an esplanade on the South-East, facing the entrance.
It faces the Tourcoing les Bains building, the city’s new water leisure centre, to which it is connected by a covered walkway and a large hardscaped esplanade which opens the perspective along a diagonal, on the north near the new offices and services district.
The scheme proposes an alternating play of variations of volumes by the crosswise modulation of roof-lights of variable heights on the entire building, like the moving keys of a piano, which establishes a dynamic of solid and glazed volumes in the urban space. Thus the building is not seen as a large, massive, silent shed-like structure, but is rather defined as a diverse landscape of pure forms of very varied heights that step down from the diving well and the swimming pool hall to the tiered seating and the changing rooms located on a lower level.

The roof-lights are elements that unify the scheme, defining the building’s structural identity and determining the quality of the light and of the internal spaces.
They contribute to the building’s strong image and they will provide supports for artificial lighting at night. Therefore, at night, the building is seen as a succession of large sheets of light of pure forms that illuminate the city while highlighting the diffracted volumes of the diving well, the swimming pool hall, the tiered seating, the changing rooms, the administration offices and the entrance hall. These volumes of light contribute to the strong image and identity of Tourcoing’s new swimming pool.

“The metaphor of water through a play of reflections and the modulation of matter”

We designed the building so that its façades express the metaphor of water through a play of reflections and the modulation of matter. The building’s envelope is composed of polished aluminium panels treated with a pattern of perforations and embossed relief elements. These panels follow the variations in the building’s volumes by means of nuances of grey and ochre, with tones that vary according to their orientation and the level where they are located.

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Plan

Olympic Swimming Pool in Tourcoing, France

Sections