Atelier Iso Builds La Claye House Around Well and Henhouse

Atelier Iso, a French architecture firm, has built a stunning timber home in La Claye, France, which beautifully preserves a 19th-century well and henhouse on a 300-square-meter lot. This project, completed in 2023, earned the Prix Régional de la Construction Bois in the Pays de la Loire and was part of the JAPL traveling exhibition. The design features a 0.6-meter structural grid, with reclaimed local stone on the street-facing facades and Douglas fir on the garden sides. Inside, poplar plywood is used, and leftover pieces have been turned into furniture. The house is oriented north-south alongside neighboring buildings, with two gardens surrounding the historic elements. Atelier Iso handled most of the construction, aside from the groundwork, foundations, and slab.