The project, overlooking Annemasse in Haute-Savoie, aims to reconcile a natural feature of the landscape (the slope) with a program of collective housing units, in the spirit of mutual enrichment. The project consists of three simple 50m-long rectangular buildings placed parallel to one another. In keeping with the landscape constraints and the particularly abrupt topography of the site, the project follows the slope of the hill for the greatest geographic and landscape continuity possible. Positioned such, the buildings’ visual impact on the city is slight because only the width of their smallest side is visible, which is coherent with the existing individual houses.

Mimicking the slope at a 15% gradient, the buildings’ relationship to the incline gives them an uncommon look, an impression of imbalance the architecture plays with. Apartments are built on six different levels, and the large ones enjoy all the domestic qualities of a house.

The buildings are raised slightly off the ground and rest on a succession of posts (rather than walls). Their impact on the supporting soil is therefore limited, and they straddle existing roads which saves on new infrastructures. Light wooden walkways flanking both sides of the buildings provide access to the homes. The wood skin accentuates the relationship to the slope by highlighting the acute angle between the ground and the vertical larch cleats. It also adds to the overall impression of weightlessness, as the buildings appear to rest lightly on the ground without disturbing the balance.