A 19th-Century Paris Apartment Building Gets a Refined Addition With a Rooftop Garden
The new elevation by local firm Rotunno Justman comprises two 645-square-foot apartments that harmonize with the existing structure and evoke a sense of nature for the residents.
The new elevation by local firm Rotunno Justman comprises two 645-square-foot apartments that harmonize with the existing structure and evoke a sense of nature for the residents.
An unassuming apartment building in Paris’s sprawling 15th Arrondissement hides a secret: a terraced rooftop garden with undulating plant beds that run down two levels like a pastoral hillside. From here, you can hear the faint hum of everyday sounds of the city—moving traffic and pedestrian voices—along with the buzz of bees and other bits of wildlife taking refuge in the urban greenery.
Paris firm Rotunno Justman added two levels and a rooftop garden to one of the city’s 19th-century residential buildings. "It’s a private roof, but we wanted to make sure other people enjoy looking at it, too," Rotunno says.
Photo: Hervé Abbadie
The garden belongs to the top unit in what had been a three-level residential building until its owner—Eric Justman, an architect and the former publisher of design magazine Architectures à Vivre— added two new levels, each with a 645-square-foot apartment.
"The idea was to respect the existing building and the context, but also go in a new direction," architect Ary Justman says.
Photo: Hervé Abbadie
He tapped his son, Ary Justman, and Maria-Giulia Rotunno, cofounders of Paris firm Rotunno Justman, to design them. "He gave us a budget and said he wanted extraordinary architecture," says Ary, who now rents the two-bedroom on the top level.
"It’s a private roof, but we wanted to make sure other people enjoy looking at it, too."
—Maria-Giulia Rotunno, architect
The garden’s curvaceous planters "mimic the topography of a mountain," Ary says. The topsoil in them helps keep the apartment below cool during the summer and stores stormwater runoff. Outdoor furniture from Vondom fills the seating area.
Photo: Hervé Abbadie
See the full story on Dwell.com: A 19th-Century Paris Apartment Building Gets a Refined Addition With a Rooftop Garden
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