Biodiversarium, Banyuls-Sur-Mer Architecture, French Learning Facility Building, Images
Biodiversarium in Banyuls-Sur-Mer
Aquariums and Research Laboratories Building, southeast France – design by Tectoniques
26 Oct 2017
Biodiversarium
Architects: Tectoniques
Location: Banyuls-Sur-Mer (66), France
Biodiversarium

Sea view

The port of Banyuls-Sur-Mer provides a unique setting for exploring and better understanding the marine biodiversity of the Pyrénées Orientales region. It is home to an extraordinarily abundant marine nature reserve, covering 650 hectares under the sea. On the land, the bay is dominated by an ocean observatory built in 1882, originally known as the “Laboratoire Arago?. Today, it is a major research centre, a facility for shared by the merged Pierre and Marie Curie and Sorbonne Universities (over 200 researchers), backed by the Pierre Fabre pharmaceutical and cosmetics firm.
The Biodiversarium was intended as a new showcase for the institution. It occupies a site formerly taken up by student-researcher accommodation which has been demolished and rebuilt on a neighbouring site by the architects Fernandez and Serres.

The two projects, of similar dimensions, both similarly positioned facing the port, now form a contemporary pairing which updates and revitalises the Banyuls landscape.
Sandwiched between the cliffs and the quayside, the Biodiversarium is built on an exceptional, but severely constrained, site. The limited construction space re...