BIGBANG, FLORIMOND GAUVIN
BIGBANG, a landscape architecture and urban planning firm set up in Lyon in 2008 by Florimond Gauvin, has designed four new viewpoints along Route du Vercors in south-eastern France, allowing the Ambel plateau landscape to be experienced in a unique way. These four viewpoints are the first projects designed as part of the “Sublimes Routes du Vercors" programme, a joint-venture between the Drôme and Isère departments and the Vercors Regional Natural Park aimed at showcasing the splendour of the views of the massif while promoting year-round tourism.
Safe parking, pedestrian paths and observation points create a progressive route inviting visitors to get out of their cars and explore the site on foot. The focus is on both the beauty and safety of the routes: separating traffic flows, expanding space and creating a transition between the road and the observation points.
The projects are carefully incorporated in the local geography. Lines and surfaces amplify the dynamics of the mountain and maintain constant dialogue with the road. A limited range of materials – local limestone and Corten steel – instils discreet unity in the whole. Thanks to their unobtrusive and austere nature, the projects do not impose a form of spectacular architecture, preferring instead to direct our eyes across the landscape, turning a simple stop along the road into a fully immersive experience.
The exploration unfolds in stages along a renovated old country road at Col de la Bataille. A ring of stones, something between a cairn and a panoramic ledge, marks the site and leads to a cantilevered passage overlooking the void, where the northern and southern winds collide.
Belvédère
des Lames, A pics & lames calcaires offers a kinetic experience: railings extend along the walkway on the
edge of the cliff, interacting with the limestone slabs of Combe de Bouvante.
At L'Arche, the path crosses a beech forest exposed to the prevailing winds. A opening in the old boundary wall amidst the majestic trees and wind-shaped beeches suddenly reveals a view of the valley, enhanced by a observation deck suspended above a cave.
Finally, the old car park at Pas de l'Aubasse has been converted into a observation point accessible to everybody. The project redefines the site's boundaries and reveals its true nature: a landscape-threshold projecting over a vast valley.
Client: Département de la Drôme ; Project: BIGBANG (Landscape Architect, Florimond Gauvin – Team Leader, Marie Salvatge – Project manager), Christophe Gonnet (artist), Valéry Gojon (VRD), Eco-Med (environment); Contactors: C-Cube (lockmaker, craftsman in wrought iron), Laquet (green spaces). Photographe and crédits photos: ®Jonathan Letoublon; Delivered: July 2024
