Description
A dreamlike home at the edge of the forest
This “extraordinary” architectural ensemble consists of two adjoining houses designed by architect Jacques-Emile Lecaron: the “Maison d’Acier”, built in 1974, and the “Maison derrière le miroir”, renovated and connected to its neighbour in 2003.
Set in 496 sqm of grounds, with private access to the Meudon forest via a small gate at the bottom of the garden, the complex has a total floor area of 340 sqm. A spiral staircase, enclosed in a red-lacquered steel tube, leads up to the roof terrace.
The ‘Maison d’Acier’ is spread over two levels. The 1st floor features a majestic reception area, offering a spacious, intimate space in deep colours. It comprises a living room with fireplace and mirrors, a second living room in an alcove with a 6-metre high ceiling, surrounded by movable partitions with built-in benches that allow the space to be modulated, a dining room that is wide open onto the landscape, and a semi-open fitted kitchen whose undulations follow the curves of the façade.
On the 2nd floor, a suite with bedroom, bathroom, integrated study and sitting area has been converted into a mezzanine above the living room, beneath an octagonal geode in yellow lacquered metal.
The garden level includes a library, a bedroom with a mezzanine opening onto the garden, an en suite shower room, two bedrooms, a bathroom, a cellar and a utility room.
Designed as an extension, the ‘House behind the mirror’ is accessible via the tube staircase, the reception area of the main house and the garden.
On the first floor, there is a large lounge-study-library area, lit by a small greenhouse cut into the staircase façade. The garden level includes a small lounge, a beautiful indoor swimming pool, a hammam and a shower room. The attic could be converted into an additional bedroom.
A pleasant roof terrace punctuated by a range of colourful features tops the house and offers panoramic views of the surrounding area and the forest.
The house has a parking space for one car underneath.
On the edge of the Meudon forest, the property benefits from the peaceful, residential setting of the town of Clamart and all local amenities (shops, schools, etc.). It is just 20 minutes from the south of Paris by RER C train.
Genesis of a poetic habitat
This unique project was custom-built by Jacques-Emile Caron between 1972 and 1974 for a childhood friend. At the time a bachelor with a busy career as a lawyer, the client wanted a place to live that looked out onto the forest and was protected from the outside world, able to serve as a space for entertaining, working and relaxing.
With its flexible, spaceship-like silhouette overlooking the Meudon forest, the ‘Maison d’Acier’ was inspired by the technological advances of the time. The modular interior spaces feature a palette of luxurious materials and deep colours, in a theatrical atmosphere reminiscent of a painting by the client. The use of mirrors multiplies the perception of space, while accents of bright colour add a pop spirit to the whole. In 1977, the owner, who had started a family, had an additional floor added on the garden level.
In the early 2000s, he acquired the adjoining house and called on Jacques-Emile Lecaron to connect the two buildings. The architect transformed the existing building into a space for work and relaxation, adjoining the space that had become the family home, using a free and poetic approach to design. With its façade reflecting the forest like a trompe-l’œil, the ‘House behind the mirror’ was completed in 2003.
An architectural playground
Located on the edge of the Meudon forest, this street in Clamart has become a veritable experimental ground for Jacques Emile Lecaron over the years. One by one, the traditionally-built houses were transformed and reinterpreted by unique architectural creations, offering generous and poetic ways of living that were as close as possible to the aspirations of those who commissioned them.
These 9 houses: the ‘Maison d’Acier’, the ‘Chalet Toulaho’, ‘l’Arche de Noé’, the ‘Château de mes filles’, the ‘Maison derrière le miroir’, the ‘Maison de la Belle au bois dormant’, embody a happy symbiosis between their users and the built environment.
Jacques-Emile Lecaron, portraitist architect
Born in Paris in 1939, Jacques-Emile Lecaron is a French architect known for his unusual houses. Close to a utopian architectural vein, he designs generous housing projects brimming with fantasy. Instead of the standardised principles of 20th-century modernism, he preferred to cultivate a human approach, adapted to the particularities of each client. As a result, he has designed a number of villas with poetic names inspired by his clients’ wishes and needs.
I have a particular way of working,’ explains the architect. I meet them several times and get them to talk about their lives, their childhoods, their plans and their desires. Above all, I never say no, I always try to find a way of making their dreams come true.
His work begins with graphic explorations in coloured pencil, playing with dreams and the imaginary, which he materialises in playful architectures.
Technical info
Asking price: €2,400,000.
Fees payable by the vendor
Full ownership
Property tax : NC
ECD IN PROGRESS
