The house is located in the city’s historical centre, near to the Roquette district and many shops, restaurants and museums, in a lively environment but in the setting of a wide, peaceful, semi-pedestrianised cobbled street. As a result, its generously sized windows and openness to the exterior are all the more appreciable.
With a surface of approximately 83 m², it has three storeys which are separated by belt courses on the façade, coated on the lower part with natural stone style rendering and made of yellow Fontvieille stone, which is typical of 18th-century houses in Arles, on the two upper floors.
The windows are refined yet simple and well proportioned, with ashlar frames, sculpted corbels, moulded windowsills and lintels, providing perfect symmetry to the property’s appearance. The almond green coloured wooden shutters have been restored in keeping with traditional techniques and are fitted with wrought iron metalwork and casement bolts, faithful to the original models.
On the ground floor of the former framing workshop, a large, dark-grey, metal framed, shatterproof glass picture window with a door in it creates a contrast between modern elements and the traditional shapes or materials of the original architecture. The east facing façade enjoys the morning sunshine and is topped by a roof made of half round tiles underlined by a double genoise corbel.
The house has been recently and fully renovated by an architect, with a quest for balance, sobriety and interior brightness as the guiding principles, and combines characterful heritage with modernity.

The house

The ground floor
The entrance to the house is through a large picture window with a door in it that opens into a bright hall with a polished concrete floor and space for storing bicycles and garden furniture. A custom-made, pinewood trellised panel set slightly back from the façade provides the dining room with privacy while allowing light to stream in.
Recently installed terracotta tiles are a nod to Provence’s traditions. The room also boasts period exposed beams, which have been stripped and sanded. An 18th-century Tours region style fireplace with a classically designed moulded overmantel and light-coloured stone mantelpiece stands against one of the side walls. To the left of it, a Louis XV style walnut wood cupboard is nestled in a restored and listed stone doorway, testifying to the character of the place’s heritage.
Following on from this room, there is a fully fitted kitchen, in which noble materials have pride of place, with a light-coloured oakwood worktop, a ceramic sink, a natural pinewood ceiling and terracotta floor tiling identical to the dining room. At the back of the room, there is a window made up of translucent glass panes.
Below, there is a naturally cool vaulted stone cellar that has lost nothing of its authentic character and which can be reached via a masonry staircase, closed by a double wooden trap door. Lighting has been installed inside.
Lastly, in the dining room, a custom-made, Japanese inspired, black, pinewood staircase climbing to the first floor of the house includes discrete and functional storage space.

The first floor
A lounge with an impressive ceiling height is bathed in light through two large-paned, double glazed windows with period style frames. Their white joinery combines harmoniously with the room’s walls, whose matt finish is resolutely modern in style. In contrast with the windows and mural finish, an exposed stonework wall restored with care pays witness to the building’s original architectural style. Echoing the ground floor, there are also terracotta tiles, though they are hexagonal in shape on this level.
The lounge leads to an approximately 8-m² room, with solid oakwood stripped flooring, that is fitted with bookshelves and has a west-facing skylight. It can be used as an office or a spare bedroom. An adjoining shower room boasts a sober, modern style and matt grey floor tiling evoking polished concrete. It has a shower, a double washbasin built into a cabinet, a lavatory, embedded spot lighting, a mechanical ventilation system, a small window and space for a washing machine. Above the staircase that climbs up from the ground floor, another black, pinewood staircase leads to the house’s second floor. Its openwork steps are echoed by the natural pinewood trellised panel balustrade.

The second floor
The bedroom on this level boasts a remarkable ceiling height thanks to conversion of the attic space, with exposed beams underlining the two slopes of the roof. It is spacious and has wide stripped solid oakwood flooring. Light streams in through two windows with period style shutters similar to those on the floor below. The bed’s headboard forms a slight partition that is fixed but not made of masonry. Behind it, there is plentiful storage space. An unobstructed view over the surrounding rooftops, with no overlooking buildings, completes this house full of character.