Construction Materials

The use of structural glass in France dates back to the end of the 19th century, although it was confined to small pieces placed in a horizontal grid of reinforced concrete. Later, the technology that enabled them to be placed vertically was developed in Germany, but it was not until 1928 that the French firm of Saint Gobain began to market, with no manufacturer’s guarantee, square, 20x20x4 pieces with fluted edges that offered an excellent external finish. However, the company refused to guarantee that its blocks would be self-bearing, so in order to prevent possible breakages of those at the base, Chareau found himself obliged to create a hidden steel grid to group them into panels of 4x6 blocks. These panels became the basic element of the design. Unlike the glass block, a primary, single function product in dimensions that are determined by technical and material demands, the panel, as a standardised building element, is a combination of components into sizes that are determined more by ergonomic than by construction criteria. The four-block width, 91 cm, made it possible to create a façade that contains doors and windows with different opening systems, as well as a large number of interior partitions, hidden panels, translucent or opaque interior doors, low or tall, fixed or moving, which close off almost all the interior spaces through juxtaposition and give the interior and exterior an exceptional unity.

The original design had identical frames on both façades. The mullions were two 30x15 mm channels welded to a 100x9 mm steel plate in order to give the façade rigidity. Horizontally, two channel sections identical to the vertical ones completed the grid that supported the glass block panels. In 1930 Chareau covered this steel framework with a mortar to achieve an apparently seamless surface, without a visible skeleton, as though it were an unlimited transparent plane. However, in the ’60s this continuous covering was removed from the main façade and replaced by metal bars that emphasised the interior sub-structure by carrying it through to the exterior. The original look was preserved on the rear façade, where the two original enclosure systems can still be seen. The ground and second floor have the same glass blocks as the front façade but a second type of panel, closer to the curtain wall concept, was employed for the living room and conservatory area on the first floor. The infill material was transparent glass, dry fitted in a steel frame, allowing the light and the sun to pass directly into the interior. The parts were bolted together with a leather seal between them for weather-tightness. The panels were composed of a steel frame into which either a fixed pane of glass or an opening unit sliding on a hidden mechanism were fitted.

Stephanie Wong

Size, Scale, and Construction

Constructed in the early modern style of architecture, the house’s design emphasized three primary traits: honesty of materials, variable transparency of forms, and juxtaposition of “industrial” materials and fixtures with a more traditional style of home décor. The primary materials used were steel, glass, and glass block. Some of the notable “industrial” elements included rubberized floor tiles, bare steel beams, perforated metal sheet,heavy industrial light fixtures and mechanical fixtures.

The Living Area. The steel columns are painted
a bright orange and covered with black slate.

The design was a collaboration between Pierre Chareau (a furniture and interiors designer), Bernard Bijvoet (a Dutch architect working in Paris since 1927) and Louis Dalbet (craftsman metalworker). Much of the intricate moving scenery of the house was designed on site as the project developed. The external form is defined by translucent glass block walls, with select areas of clear glazing for transparency  Internally, the division of spaces within a room can be varied by the use of sliding, folding or rotating screens in glass, sheet or perforated metal, or in combination. Some other mechanical components included an overhead trolley from the kitchen to dining room, a retracting stair from the private sitting room to Madame Dalsace’s bedroom, and complex bathroom cupboards and fittings.

The program of the home was somewhat unusual in that it included a ground-floor medical suite for Dr. Dalsace. This variable circulation pattern was provided for by a rotating screen which hid the private stairs from patients during the day but framed the stairs at night.

The first stage was to demolish the interior and underpin the upper storey with the new metal structure. The second stage was to remove the façades of the first and second storeys. However, doing so left the metal frame as the only support for the entire weight of the storey that was preserved, and thus Chareau introduced the possibility of new materials (steel, glass). By accepting the new, light, transparent materials in order to harness their expressive qualities, Chareau effectively superseded the tradition of buildings that identified enclosure and bearing walls as an insoluble whole.


Stephanie