A pixelated skin made from thousands of glass tiles wraps around the sweeping headquarters for French daily newspaper Le Monde designed by Snøhetta in Paris.
Set within the capital's 13th arrondissement, the office provides newsrooms for each of the French media company Le Monde Group's publications, under the same roof, for the first time.
Its semi-transparent shell arches over a new plaza and also contains public facilities, designed by Snøhetta with local studio SRA to establish a dialogue between the company and the public.
Above: the Le Monde Headquarters is covered in thousands of glass tiles. Top image: its arched form reduces weight on a railway line below ground
Snøhetta first revealed the design for Le Monde Group Headquarters in 2015, two weeks after the terrorist attacks on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris. The openness of the design therefore comments on the importance of freedom of speech and also reflects Le Monde Group's goal of continuing to provide accessible information for all.
The glass tiles vary in transparency and create a pixelated pattern
"Since its inception, the Le Monde Group Headquarters has embodied an architectural and symbolic counterpoint to the many challenges our societies face today," explained Snøhetta founding partner Kjetil Trædal Thorsen.
"The building is primarily about opening up in a time where fear and uncertainty pushes our societies to increase barriers and strengthen security enforcement,&quo...