Labfac: Théâtre de Cornouaille, Quimper
Project type
It is located in the center of the town of Quimper, an ancient Breton town once the capital of the county of "La Cornouaille" and now capital of the department of Finistère.
Quimper has maintained its characteristic aspect, with remains of the 14th and 15th century ramparts and the typical houses in wood and stone; the historical fabric is largely intact and the expansion of the last 50 years has stratified outward.
The Théâtre de Cornouaille is part of a zoning plan called ZAC ( Zone d'Aménagement Concerté), designed to valorize the city center by creating a pedestrian plaza surrounded by buildings of cultural importance like the Mediatheque, the Contemporary Art Center and the Academy of Fine Arts.
The building stands out sharply with its clean, harmonious volumes; its presence is not aggressive but closely in harmony with the spirit of the town, in spite of the fact that it is different from every other building in the zone.
At first sight the construction does not have the classical look of a theater but is more reminiscent of an old warehouse restored and adapted for a new use, a dock near a harbor; it looks like it has been there for many decades, except for the part in concrete that emerges from the top and betrays its modernity.
In shape, the theater is a parallelepiped paneled in dark wood and containing another parallelepiped on the inside, in concrete, taller than the outside one.
The distinct use of two materials characterizes the different functions: while the central part in concrete contains the functional nucleus of the building, that can be expected to remain unchanged, the outer part in wood holds secondary spaces and is designed to contemplate possible alterations or expansion, by adding more structural modules of the same type.
The building also houses a bookshop, a bar and other shops, as well as the areas specific to the theater, contained in the nucleus, consisting of a hall with 700 seats, rehearsal rooms and areas functional to scenery installation.
The inside is sober and functional: the actual theater area follows the tradition of the Italian theater with stalls and a balcony, with the walls, floor and structures in charcoal grey and red seats; by contrast the public areas are warm and friendly, paneled in wood with gaps showing the concrete structure, softened by the addition of fragments of local granite.
The stage is equipped with the most modern apparatus and is valorized by some important practical ideas: a system of adjustable fins on the side walls controls the acoustics while the stage front has a flexible opening that can reach 18 meters, making it possible to set it up for various types of entertainment.
On the outside, the theater is connected to the surrounding spaces by openings on all four sides; the main opening in the front is distinguished by a mesh structure in steel resting on panels of tropical wood, selected for its resistance to atmospheric agents.
The structure in iron can be used as a marquee; special letters can be fitted in the squares to provide information in a highly visible and easily updatable way.
A parking lot has been built underneath the building, to resolve the parking problem with an ample margin. Cost planning and analysis of management also made provision for integrated urban development.
The Théâtre de Cornouaille fits into its surroundings with the simplicity of an elementary shape, made familiar by the use of materials and by the aspect of extreme interactivity.The lack of any important limitations enabled the architects to concentrate completely on the nature and ideal qualities of the project; at the center of their research they placed function, and the design of the essential spaces was guided by rationality of execution.
The solution adopted for the exterior seems to stress the function of the building, showing the equipment used to prepare the scenery visible on the inside and giving the impression of being backstage.
Evocative of the secrets and fascinating mechanisms of show business, the Théâtre de Cornouaille opens to the city with a naturalness that makes it all the more authentic.
Laura Puliti
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