Saturday, 21 November, architect Christophe Nottin introduced me to the beach resort of Biarritz, neighboring town Bidart, traditional Basque house design, and the engineering firm Nobatek. I will write a separate entry on Nobatek. Many thanks to Christophe for sharing his hometown with me.
Napoléon III and his wife Eugénie are responsible for making Biarritz the beach resort it is today. Napoléon III built this villa for his wife in 1854-55. For the next 16 years, the villa hosted international royalty and many balls. Today, the villa is the luxurious Hôtel du Palais. The semi-circular ballroom is now a sumptuous bar and restaurant that overlook the sea.
The east facade of a mid-18th century basque farmhouse gives an idea of how this vernacular architecture responds to the landscape, climate, and building technologies of the region. The walls are thick masonry, covered with a hard stucco, and windows are small. The weather around Biarritz is influenced by the Pyrennes mountains to the south and the Atlantic ocean to the west - fierce storms often blow in from the ocean during the winter. To protect against this, the west wall of traditional houses is thick, extends above the roofline, and has no windows. The gabled roof abuts the west wall and various sheds abut the dwelling rooms of the house, creating a sheltered, east-facing courtyard. This house is located in Bidart, a small town just south of Biarritz. Designs are currently underway to convert the abandoned farmland around the house into a fairly dense residential community, as the farmstead is located close to town center.
A detail of the inscription over the house entrance. Note the language is French, but the designs are the Basque cross. Note date of 1759.
Napoléon III and his wife Eugénie are responsible for making Biarritz the beach resort it is today. Napoléon III built this villa for his wife in 1854-55. For the next 16 years, the villa hosted international royalty and many balls. Today, the villa is the luxurious Hôtel du Palais. The semi-circular ballroom is now a sumptuous bar and restaurant that overlook the sea.
The east facade of a mid-18th century basque farmhouse gives an idea of how this vernacular architecture responds to the landscape, climate, and building technologies of the region. The walls are thick masonry, covered with a hard stucco, and windows are small. The weather around Biarritz is influenced by the Pyrennes mountains to the south and the Atlantic ocean to the west - fierce storms often blow in from the ocean during the winter. To protect against this, the west wall of traditional houses is thick, extends above the roofline, and has no windows. The gabled roof abuts the west wall and various sheds abut the dwelling rooms of the house, creating a sheltered, east-facing courtyard. This house is located in Bidart, a small town just south of Biarritz. Designs are currently underway to convert the abandoned farmland around the house into a fairly dense residential community, as the farmstead is located close to town center.
A detail of the inscription over the house entrance. Note the language is French, but the designs are the Basque cross. Note date of 1759.
