Hestia
In Gouzeaucourt, the "Hestia" Health House explores the intersection between the medical and domestic worlds. A place for care and encounter, it addresses the challenges of a rural area facing depopulation. More than just a functional space, it embodies a dynamic rurality, where architecture engages with its surroundings through carefully framed landscapes.
In a context where rurality seems to fade into oblivion, the "Hestia" Health House asserts a different perspective: that of a reaffirmed rurality, capable of reinventing itself around contemporary needs and aspirations. Far from merely offering programmatic responses, the project presents a sensitive reading of health as a structuring element of the territory. Located near the old train station, between the town center and a suburban neighborhood, the Health House is a facility that, through its architectural posture, acts as a new anchor within the local fabric. A hybrid space, it combines care, social support, and meeting areas. But more than that, it revitalizes an area marked by the abandonment of certain services, breathing new life into it with a newfound centrality.
Architecture and Landscape
A Subtly Orchestrated Dialogue Designed with a sober yet expressive volume, the Health House is organized into distinct entities, carefully crafted to enhance the user experience. The raised volumes, in addition to sculpting the urban front, create spaces with varying heights, responding to different programmatic needs: consultation, discussion, reception. These volumes create a rhythm that enlivens the human scale while establishing visual connections with the broader landscape. The chosen materials, particularly the light brick, dialogue with local typologies while giving the building a timeless elegance. This material extends across facades punctuated by precise framing: some open to agricultural landscapes, while others face the garden. The project's environmental approach prioritizes minimal use of cladding materials, conserving resources while offering a refined aesthetic. The exposed timber frame and structural brick highlight raw materials and contribute to sustainable, minimalist construction. This approach combines simplicity, functionality, and environmental respect, making the Health House a symbol of modern rurality.
A Living and Evolving Rurality
In harmony with its territory, "Hestia" does more than provide a medical function. It embodies a vision: that of a place capable of reweaving connections among dispersed residents, offering continuity where imbalance had set in. Far from the clichéd image of a rurality frozen in time, it defends a transforming, fertile territory, where architecture can play the role of a catalyst. Every detail of the project reflects this intention. The spaces, although essentially functional, are permeated by attention to light, use, and the way inhabitants will appropriate these places. Thus, by giving a new face to local health, the "Hestia" Health House elevates rurality as a space in full transformation. This project highlights the ability of rural areas to adapt and innovate, while creating human-scale places where care and solidarity restore meaning to the collective.
