Toward a new rurality in Western Hainaut

Throughout the summer of 2024, as part of its Temps d'archi #10 entitled Vers une nouvelle ruralité ? (Towards a new rurality?), ICA will be taking you on a discovery of rural areas in Wallonia and the architectural approaches capable of developing their territory in a more qualitative way. Six guided tours will focus on the spatial challenges facing rural areas and provide answers, while inviting you to discover new ideas and sustainable ways of living together in the countryside. Designed as opportunities for discovery, exchange and discussion, the tours will be led by the architects in charge of the projects visited and members of the ICA.

This fourth day will take us on the roads of western Hainaut on Sunday 8 September:

10:00 : Musée du Folklore de Mouscron, V+

11:30 : Ferme de Beauregard, Arcadus

12:30 : Crématorium des Blancs Arbres, AM Teau

13:30 : Lunch (inclus)

14:30 : Promenoir des cimes et Maison du parc nature, Arcadus

16:00 : Maison Ulysse, AHA Aurélie Hachez

(1) The renovation and extension of the Musée du Folklore de Mouscron and the development of its grounds are being carried out by V+. The museum is a direct extension of the sheds that once housed the museum's offices. This relationship also exists in volume. The depth and height of the museum are proportioned in direct relation to this building, but also, by extension, to all of Mouscron's industrial heritage. The horizontal positioning of the Museum has enabled all the public areas to be placed on the ground floor, with a visual and physical connection to the park.

(2) The former farm of the Moulin Seigneurial de Beauregard, restored by Arcadus, includes parts dating from 1773, the 18th century and the second half of the 19th century. The best way to reveal this precious heritage was to associate it with a lively cultural function, as envisaged by the project owner: a venue for artists in residence. The aim is to invite small troupes and visiting artists to take up residency, so that they can meet each other and immerse themselves in local traditions. The designers' work here is guided by the principles of the Venice Charter. The aim is to restore the original character of the structures, eliminate any inappropriate additions or interventions and retain as many of the existing authentic features as possible, while adapting to today's comfort requirements. Clearly identifiable by its uncluttered massing and the dematerialised treatment of its timber cladding, this wing bears the hallmark of the recent renovation of the buildings without jeopardising the heritage value of the site.

(3) In Frasnes-lez-Anvaing, AM Teau has designed a funeral centre nestling at the heart of a site with landscaping that is resolutely open to the surrounding countryside. Literally out of this world and out of time in its function and form, this heterotopia is not easily approached. The volumes neither line up nor complement each other, but seem to be juxtaposed in an almost disorderly fashion. The reception areas at the rear of the site, largely glazed and open to the landscape, give way to enclosed, almost secret gardens for contemplation. Here and there, between the pillars of the cloister, there are gaps in the walls, ensuring a constant relationship between the interior architecture, intimate and contemplative, and the immensity of the surrounding nature.

(4) In the Plaines de l'Escaut Nature Park, the "promenoir des cimes" is a footbridge which, via a spiral staircase, takes the curious, the student or the scientist to the top of the trees to observe the forest. Its light grey metal structure is almost transparent. The slender columns supporting this suspended walkway merge with the trunks of the trees.

(5) The Maison Ulysse in Orcq by Aurélie Hachez involves recreating interior spaces, building a porch to house the children's bedrooms and, above all, constructing an extension at the back of the house, using concrete pillars to almost completely eliminate the boundaries between inside and outside. This ensemble creates a patio, the family's living room and an outdoor space under a canopy that forms a transition to the long garden. These massive structures contrast with the delicacy of the details and openings. The concrete and white slate highlight the old bricks, which are still partially whitewashed.