Exutoire's 22YB1 Renovation in Hanoi Advocates for Adaptive Reuse
Exutoire, founded in Oslo by Paul-Antoine Lucas and Bui Quy Son in 2019, has successfully renovated a 1990s tube house in Hanoi, known as 22YB1. The project, which serves both as their residence and workspace, was completed between 2023 and 2025 and is set to feature in Wallpaper*'s Architects' Directory for 2026. The design focuses on minimal alterations and the use of long-lasting materials, with significant changes made to improve airflow, including a repositioned staircase and enlarged living areas. Additionally, the pair, licensed HMONP architects, are pursuing PhDs at RMIT and will curate the Luxembourg Pavilion at the 2027 Venice Architecture Biennale.
Key facts
- Exutoire completed 22YB1, a renovation of a 1990s tube house in Hanoi, between 2023 and 2025.
- The plot is only 3 meters wide by 12 meters deep, across three and a half storeys.
- The renovation moved the staircase to the rear, removed partitions, and rebuilt the rear façade in glass brick.
- Material palette includes granito, raw concrete, galvanised steel, corrugated metal, white paint, yellow tiles, royal blue cabinets, and lacquer-red handrails.
- Exutoire was founded in Oslo in 2019 by Paul-Antoine Lucas and Bui Quy Son, now based in Hanoi.
- Lucas and Son are HMONP-licensed architects in France and PhD candidates at RMIT University.
- They will co-curate the Luxembourg Pavilion at the 2027 Venice Architecture Biennale with Céline Zimmer.
- Their first book, 'Housing, Micropolitics, and Pedagogies,' was published by Ruby Press in 2025.
- 22YB1 is featured in Wallpaper*'s Architects' Directory 2026, which includes 30 young studios.
- The article was written by Sofia de la Cruz, Travel Editor at Wallpaper*.
Entities
Artists
- Paul-Antoine Lucas
- Bui Quy Son
- Céline Zimmer
- Sofia de la Cruz
Institutions
- Exutoire
- RMIT University
- Oslo School of Architecture and Design
- TU Darmstadt
- Chulalongkorn University
- RMIT Vietnam
- Ruby Press
- Wallpaper*
- Luxembourg Pavilion
- Venice Architecture Biennale
- Chartered Institute of Journalists
Locations
- Oslo
- Norway
- Hanoi
- Vietnam
- France
- Australia
- Luxembourg
- Venice
- Italy
- Germany
- Thailand