Maison Bulle | Jean-Benjamin Maneval

" The egg-shaped construction is one of the principles within nature : fruits, air bubbles, biological organs. The angle is an invention of man to satisfy certain techniques. Nowadays, the technique takes a step back from the abstract mathematical conception, and by approaching the forms of organic life, it must serve man in a more direct way ».

Jean-Benjamin Maneval (1923-1986), French architect and urban planner, made the first sketches of his six-shell bubble house in 1963 : a little revolution in the field of prefabricated housing and foundation- less architecture. Produced between 1968 and 1970, this house, which has a surface area of 36m2, is formed by assembling six independent reinforced polyester shells.
Originally, the architect had imagined these bubble houses as secondary residences with an ergonomic design for a family of four, where the space in each alcove would be optimized to the maximum.
In 2014, a non-conformist collector acquired at an auction an authentic 1968 bubble house by Jean-Benjamin Maneval.
It is installed on his family estate, a former stud farm in the heart of the Véxin area, for which he has given the artistic direction to KIF, an interdisciplinary creative studio formed by Guillaume Furet and Mélissa Louis.

KIF's vision for the redesign of this bubble was that of a capsule of conviviality, a bubble of comfort in the middle of nature, based on a hotel suite :

« To bring this vision to life, we wanted the signature of a contemporary designer. The collaboration with Dorothée Meilichzon was an obvious choice, so that she could superimpose her own unique vision and bring a whole new functionality to this singular architectural object. »

The bubble house had been designed empty by Maneval, so everything had to be imagined.
Dorothée Meilichzon, head of the CHZON studio, which specialises in the design of hotels, bars and restaurants, designed the interior architecture of this house as a hotel suite, in the continuity of JB Maneval's work : no straight lines. A suite set in nature, where you can sleep, read, wash yourself, or invite a few friends for a drink or a dinner, while enjoying the furtive appearance of wild boars and deers through the large plexiglass openings.
Each piece of furniture, taking up the double curve of the hull, was designed and manufactured specifi- cally for this project.

Five of the shells share a large orange carpet, but each hull has its own function: the "bed" shell, is upholstered in a very graphic Edinburgh Weavers fabric as a nod to the owner of this bubble who is a passionate collector of Vasarely.
The "bar" shell is made of Tibor fabric and custom-made furniture in stainless steel.
The "entrance" shell hosts a lamp by Axel Chay, facing the view, and is next to a very contemplative "living room" shell furnished with two rounded benches, upholstered in carpet and a Chimera lamp by Vico Magistretti.

The "shower" shell, all in Arabescato marble and pastille mosaic, is as white as the house.
The "wood" shell with its sliding walnut partition and its luminous floor hosts a toilet and a dressing room.

In the centre, a round table with its 4 antique armchairs and two Mushroom poufs by Pierre Paulin are the meeting point of these 6 shells.