Oasis - Interior refurbishment using reclaimed materials
Circular resource centre
As part of the Oasis project led by REI Habitat and Sem PariSeine, winners of the second Réinventer Paris competition, the former Musée de la Libération located on the Jardin de l’Atlantique will soon be repurposed for new mixed uses.
It is only natural, within a framework of transitional urbanism increasingly shaping our cities and lives, that the Salvation Army is occupying the ground floor of the west wing to open a temporary resource centre. The multidisciplinary architecture firm WAO proudly designed this pragmatic and circular interior project. Committed to waste reduction and virtuous design, we wanted to maximise the potential of existing elements and its opportunities.
Reuse of spaces and adaptation to new functions
Reuse and reversibility were central to the project. The primary aim was to maximise the reuse of existing elements, benefiting from museum installations, and minimising unnecessary interventions. The design was adapted to the specific context, akin to how one would consider topography or urban fabric, but at the scale of scenography. Very little demolition took place, and dismantled elements were reused on-site:
All ten metal display cases, fixed to the floor, were retained to clearly delineate the public-facing shop area from the sorting space. The existing glazing provides transparency that highlights the reuse and the Salvation Army’s work;
The site’s suspended ceilings were removed and reinstalled onto metal exhibition supports around the museum’s perimeter to create sorting tables;
Lighting fixtures from the former museum, integrated into the exhibition supports, were refurbished and reused to illuminate the entire visitor and sorting area. The 60 fluorescent tubes were suspended and arranged to create leading lines on the technical ceiling, establishing visual continuity between the public space and the working area;
Old cabinets recovered by the Salvation Army were laid on their sides and fitted with wheels to serve as sorting bins; in some cases, they acted as anchoring points for partition walls.
Temporality and anticipated end-of-life
The key challenge of this project lies in its short lifespan, prompting an opportunistic approach focused on ensuring the reusability of materials and fittings we design.
All shop display cases were outfitted with shelves, supports, and storage crates that will later be converted into benches and seats;
Partition walls between display cases, designed to become tables once dismantled, already include legs and screws;
Counters were designed in modular units to adapt to all configurations when reintegrated into the future hospitality project.
Commitment to reuse
WAO, engaged in creating and implementing reuse supply chains, positioned itself as a facilitator. This circular approach led by the firm has two aspects:
Design phase: We design elements respecting the client’s specifications and regulations, while maintaining flexibility in materials and assembly methods.
Construction phase: We adapt to material supply constraints and resource availability, collaborating with contractors to determine assemblies conducive to second-life use (for example, avoiding screws on future table tops). The joinery work was split into two lots to align with the production capacities and material sources of Re-Store (Remake + Jocko) and Extramuros. One produced several panels from finger-jointed wood; the other manufactured a large quantity of boxes combining OSB and plywood salvaged from various sites.
