ESPACE ETHER
Wellness center and Café-restaurant in Renens
Surf : 3000 m2
Project
Transformation of an SBB building located near Renens railway station and dating from 1904, into a contemporary wellness centre.
The building selected for this project, a former railway maintenance workshop, is one of the earliest Swiss buildings constructed in reinforced concrete using the Hennebique system. Designed by Vaud architect Paul Rosset, the building is listed in the Vaud architectural inventory. The main building and its two annexes were selected as the site for the development of a wellness centre within an urban context.
The project's guiding principles are the preservation of the main building's strong architectural features, combined with the optimisation of natural light entering through the 50 roof skylights and the large openings along the façades.
Spanning 3,000 sqm of floor area, the proposed programme includes a fitness room, yoga studio, multipurpose room, two swimming pools, sauna and hammam, solarium, 20 treatment rooms, relaxation areas, as well as a restaurant with an independent entrance, allowing it to operate separately from the wellness centre.
At the heart of the project lies a dramatic atrium framed by two bridges connecting the upper levels.
Each function is housed within a polycarbonate volume, set back from the building’s façades. which allows natural light to flow throughout the original structure and penetrate the individual volumes.
The project is centred around light and transparency, with two key materials defining the interior: polycarbonate and sheer fabric.
The translucent properties of polycarbonate allow both overhead and lateral daylight to filter into the activity spaces. In the evening, the volumes become luminous elements themselves, casting a soft glow throughout the building.
Sheer fabric is present throughout the spaces, providing flexibility and privacy while preserving the flow of natural light and creating a soft, intimate and enveloping atmosphere.
