French designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec have unveiled a pair of identical glass and steel containers for the International Contemporary Art Fair in Paris (+ movie).
On display side by side in the Jardin des Tuileries, the twin Kiosque units were commissioned by Paris property developer Emerige and are built from powder-coated steel.
Both structures feature a single end wall constructed from floor-to-ceiling glass, while the 12-metre-long sides of both boxes have central glass doors. Hidden sliding steel panels can be moved to entirely enclose the structures.
A single zigzag-shaped roof covers both containers, and extends beyond the walls to provide shelter for people standing outside. Lanterns also hang from under the extended portion of the roof for nighttime use.
The installation took the brothers three years to design and produce, and has been built to be easily transported and assembled – with a total construction time of three hours. Models created by the brothers show how the roof can fold into itself in two-panel sections, which can then be stacked and moved in a trailer.
The pavilion will be used as a display area and retail space for the International Contemporary Art Fair (FIAC), which takes place from 22 to 25 October 2015. Kengo Kuma has also installed a climbable wooden structure in the Tuilieres to coincide with the event.
The Kiosque units will remain on display until 5 November 2015, when they will be donated to the city of Paris – which intends to use them as moveable venues for social and cultural projects in various parts of the capital.
The Bouroullecs, who were awarded the 2014 London Design Medal, made the news recently when they launched their first electronics product – a flat-screen television with a distinctive I-shaped profile.
The pair have also designed tiles for Mutina, furniture for Hay, and a fabric collection for Kvadrat.
Photography is by Studio Bouroullec, courtesy of the Musée du Louvre.