These Eco-Friendly, Micro-Architectures in France Prove Less is More

It’s believed that up to 50 percent of France is undeveloped agricultural land. For its 12th edition, the Biennale Internationale Design Saint-Etienne capitalized on this notion with its theme Parcours des Bifurcations, aka roads, in this case ones that lead to various exhibition sites throughout the country’s east-central region. One is a wheat field along the Rue des Noyers in Firminy, and, in collaboration with the Site Le Corbusier, is where Döppel Studio has conceived “Le Champ des Possibles,” or the field of possibilities. “We come from the French countryside,” says Jonathan Omar, cofounder, with Lionel Dinis Salazar, of Döppel. “This is our first project inspired by that.”

Taking cues from Corbu’s 1965 cabin in Provence—at 1,600 square feet, it’s the smallest UNESCO World Heritage Site—and other projects in his cannon, Döppel created six “micro-architectures” that embrace the natural landscape and promote that less is more. Each installation is under 215 square feet, the figure in France that necessitates a building permit, and clad with eco-friendly tarpaulin stuffed with cereal waste from the wheat harvest. “We show,” Salazar explains, “the potential of France’s empty spaces as refuges for the body and the spirit.” They’re on view through January 15, 2023.