Discover two clever ideas for natural stone walls on Rocalia
Are you looking for original, upstanding ideas for building in urban areas? Rocalia would like you to discover two innovative architectural concepts made entirely of natural stone.
Are you looking for original, upstanding ideas for building in urban areas? Rocalia would like you to discover two innovative architectural concepts made entirely of natural stone, the brainchild of doctoral students in architecture. These walls are esthetically pleasing and eco-designed and can be easily replicated, a perfect response to current community issues. Don’t miss out!
© Photo credit: Olivier Genevoix (ChartierDalix), biodiverse wall, june 2021
A biodiverse wall, perfect synergy between plants and natural stone
The first prototype of this green wall was built in 2021 according to the principles of dry-stone construction by Joël JANNET and Martin MURIOT, members of the FFPPS. Their work was based on the doctoral thesis of Delphine LEWANDOWSKI (ChartierDalix architecture firm) who worked on biodiverse walls and imagined and refined this new concept.
This decidedly modern self-supporting green wall was showcased at the second Biennale d'architecture et de paysage (BAP - biannual architecture and landscaping trade show), Île-de-France in 2022. It will be exhibited at the upcoming Rocalia trade show, together with a dry-stone wall built with traditional masonry techniques. This will be an opportunity to examine a panorama of techniques from every angle!
This work will be made from reclaimed stones and the by-products of a quarry, which demonstrates the various possibilities of reusing natural stones. We have already mentioned the biodiverse wall in this article, along with two other projects based on reused materials.
A prefabricated wall to optimize solid stone construction
The doctoral students of GSA Laboratory (ENSA Paris Malaquais) are pushing back the boundaries of possibilities to build with natural stone by devising a technique for creating prefabricated load-bearing walls and arch in a workshop. It is a brilliant idea that could save a lot of time in new building construction.
This process was implemented at the Grands Ateliers (GAIA) during a workshop with architecture students from ENSA Paris Malaquais and itinerant stonemasons from the Compagnons du Devoir who worked the stone in flexion rather than compression, exploiting the reciprocal contacts between successive blocks. Three stone elements were created:
- a 58-block Soleil archway, the first version of which failed the lifting test
- a TOS (Triply Orthogonal System) archway with 30 self-locking keystones
- and a load-bearing wall with socket joints, exhibited on Rocalia.
All the details of each of these projects can be seen at the show.
This project made in Fontvieille stone was made posible thanks to the Carrières de Provence (Provence's quarries). Some of these blocks had already been used a considerable number of times in the training program and were then reused to design this wall, which also illustrates the possibilities of reusing materials, one of Rocalia's mantras.
Rocalia invites you to two dedicated conferences where you can discover all the secrets behind the beautiful projects at the show.
