atelier gabu hand-builds observation tower on french hillside using timber and translucent fabric

GABU ERECTS HAND-BUILT TIMBER OBSERVATION TOWER IN VAUDÉMONT

Designed and built by architecture studio GABU for the 2021 edition of L’Écho du Marteau, a festival dedicated to architectural experimentation, Brunebasse is a temporary observation tower sited on a hillside in Vaudémont, northeastern France. Positioned directly opposite the heavy stone remains of Brunehaut, a medieval ruined keep, the installation establishes a formal counterpoint to its historic neighbor. Rather than replicating the monument’s defensive masonry and mass, the project employs a light, permeable structural timber grid that prioritizes panoramic visibility over interior enclosure.

TRANSLUCENT TEXTILE VEIL covers LIGHTWEIGHT TIMBER framework

Atelier GABU’s architects hand-assembled the elevated timber viewing platform without mechanical tools, framing the structure as a case study in material economy and low-impact fabrication. Slender dimensional lumber is joined through direct mechanical connections to establish an open tectonic frame. Sections of the exterior envelope are wrapped in a semi-transparent textile veil that filters natural light while maintaining visual transparency toward the adjacent fields and tree canopy. Throughout the day, the shifting sun projects the diagonal bracing members as geometric shadow patterns onto the fabric scrim, rendering the structural logic legible from both the interior deck and the exterior landscape.

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project info:

name: Brunebasse
architect: Atelier GABU | @atelier.gabu

location: Vaudémont, France

event: Festival L’écho du marteau

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