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DuPont Benedictus Awards 2002

Romantic Summer Pavilion in Burgundy, France

Overall 2002 winner Dirk Jan Postel achieves 'minimalist historic preservation' with laminated glass

In the mid 1990s, an eighteenth-century folly near Avalon, in the Burgundy region of France, was converted into a small summer residence for a Dutch neurologist and his wife, an art historian. Architect Dirk Jan Postel of Rotterdam was retained to build a laminated glass skylight for the converted folly in 1997. However, while inspecting the site with its owner, the architect accidentally discovered a former gunpowder vault in a bridge land head. Enchanted, the client agreed to transform the vault into a guest room.

Two laminated glass panels on either side carry the roof's load and help the roof appear to "float on nothing.

The result is an elegant and simple, laminated glass pavilion named 'The temple of love' by the architect, which serves as romantic guest quarters to the main summer residence.

Postel explained: "We excavated 2.5 m of limestone to create an access to the vault. The concept was to create a 'belvedere' (a pavilion for the contemplation of nature, used principally in summer). The belvedere is situated at the raised level of the former railway bridge, so there was the potential to give guests extensive views to the river and beyond, across the wonderful Burgundy landscape."

Laminated glass used to 'extend the space'

Postel said: "From the start, we wanted to avoid invasive construction barriers to the views. We wanted to extend to the maximum the natural space of the track and the bridge. We chose laminated glass to house the pavilion because of the material's transparency and because it enhances the beauty of the existing stonework. Laminated glass provides the best safety and clarity. Importantly, it is the only type of glass with sufficient safety and strength for the vertical glazing. The result is that the roof too becomes part of the 'endless space' that you perceive from the inside. You really feel that you are 'flying in space', that you are in close communion with the nature all around you, which is exactly the effect we wanted to achieve!"

Laminated glass enhances the beauty of the stonework. A hatch, also of laminated glass, allows light into the room below.

The goal of the design is to make the roof appear to be "floating on nothing", as the architect put it. Laminated glass was the material of choice in order to avoid barriers and extend the space. The architect refused to apply steel cross-bars for structural stability and found the solution instead by fixing laminated glass panels directly into the ground. The detailing is coherent, unobtrusive and minimal, and looks as though the glass is cut directly into the stone. As well as structural strength, laminated glass was chosen for its safety and clarity.

The pavilion's cantilevered roof consists of a timber stressed skin construction weighing about 2,000 kg. Two laminated glass panels on either side carry the roof's load. Lateral stability and the ground fixings are provided by two laminated, toughened glass panels; each panel is 2.3 m high. Four smaller side-panels of laminated glass contribute to rotational stability, while four toughened glass doors give access to the pavilion and allow for ventilation. A laminated glass hatch covers a manhole to the former vault, providing light to the room below.

Postel said that one of the most difficult parts of the construction was the roof, which was built first and raised above scaffolding which would allow the glass perimeter to be built. The roof was carefully lowered onto the glass to evenly build up the pressure of the construction.

The Rotterdam-based architect worked in association with an all-Dutch team that included structural engineer Rob Nijsse of Velp, glazing firm Alverre of Almelo and laminator Scheuten of Venlo.

The 2002 DuPont Benedictus Awards judges said: "We were struck by the poetic clarity in the new as juxtaposed against the old, dramatically aided by the use of laminated glass as the total supporting structure. The juxtaposition is carefully carved out, with great simplicity. We do not know of a finer example of the use of laminated glass as a total structural element.

"The absence of all interfering elements is interesting. It's a fine example of historic preservation. There is a great clarity concerning what is old and new; one could even call it minimalist historic preservation. One aspect highlights and strengthens the other."