Maison Bordeaux / OMA | Classics On Architecture Lab

Architects: OMA
Year: 1998
Photographs: OMA, Hans Werlemann | Courtesy of OMA
Town: Floirac
Country: France

Maison Bordeaux, designed by Rem Koolhaas and OMA in 1998 near Bordeaux, France, reinterprets the concept of “a house as a machine for living.” Built after the husband’s paralyzing accident, the home balances complexity and accessibility across three vertically stacked volumes, each with distinct functions. The ground level, embedded in the hill, is a private, intimate space; the transparent middle floor serves as a social area with open views, while the top level holds bedrooms within an opaque enclosure with port-hole windows. Central to the design is a movable office platform that doubles as an elevator, allowing the husband to move freely across floors. Externally, the top volume appears to float above the glass middle section, supported by a concealed steel cylinder with a spiral staircase and an L-brace tensioned by a ground-anchored cable. Though private, Maison Bordeaux remains a landmark in residential architecture, celebrated for its unique combination of spatial dynamism and functionality.

With an approach that transforms even simple programs into spaces of dynamic redefinition, Rem Koolhaas and OMA reconceived the idea that “a house is a machine for living” in their design for Maison Bordeaux. Completed in 1998, the house is perched on a cape-like hill with views overlooking Bordeaux, embodying an architectural response both functional and conceptually rich.

Maison bordeaux / oma | classics on architecture lab

The house was initially designed for a couple and their family, but in 1994, before Rem Koolhaas and OMA were commissioned, the husband suffered a life-threatening car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down.

Two years after his accident, the couple approached Rem Koolhaas to design a new home near Bordeaux. Despite his paralysis, the husband requested not a straightforward, accessible home but a more intricate design, expressing, “Contrary to what you would expect, I want a complex house because the house will define my world.” This preference for complexity became central to Koolhaas’s approach, shaping a residence that combined spatial complexity with accessibility.

Koolhaas proposed a deceptively simple structure with a spatially intricate interior, organized as three distinct volumes stacked vertically. Each of these volumes has unique spatial qualities and functions, forming what is essentially a compilation of three “houses” in one, each with specific characteristics and conditioning suited to different needs within the home.

The house presents itself as three distinct volumes that alternate between opaque and transparent. The lower level, a solid mass embedded into the hillside, houses the family’s more private, intimate activities. This space is designed with a cavernous, almost labyrinthine quality, creating an atmosphere suited for private family life within a structure that feels both enclosed and grounded.

The middle volume is the house’s most transparent and frequently used area. Designed as an open-plan living space, it spans both indoors and outdoors, offering expansive views of Bordeaux and supporting various activities. In contrast, the top volume, like the lower level, is opaque and encloses the bedrooms for the couple and their children. This upper level is punctuated with port-hole windows, allowing residents private views from their beds while maintaining an overall sense of enclosure.

Each floor in Maison Bordeaux is uniquely designed, raising questions about how a disabled individual could navigate such a spatially intricate home. While the house lacks a repeated organizational system, all three volumes are unified by a central elevator that serves each floor. However, this elevator is ingeniously disguised as the husband’s office, which moves vertically throughout the house. It provides seamless access from the kitchen on the lower level up to the bedroom on the top floor, operated by a large hydraulic piston that raises or lowers the room as needed. This setup allows the office to function as both a workspace and a means of vertical circulation, making the complex layout accessible and adaptable for the homeowner.

The concept of a room capable of moving vertically through Maison Bordeaux brings a dynamic, transformative quality to the home. This adaptable platform not only serves as the homeowner’s office but continually redefines both the space of the office itself and each area where it stops. By seamlessly integrating this flexible, elevating room, the design ensures that the home remains spatially fluid and adaptable, providing an evolving experience within each level of the house.

With its three distinct volumes stacked vertically, the house gives the impression that the top volume floats above the middle level, thanks to the transparency of the glass separating them. This complex floor arrangement raises structural questions about how these volumes are supported. The third volume appears to hover over and even cantilever above the middle section, creating an architectural curiosity about the hidden support system that sustains this arrangement.

The cantilevered top volume is structurally supported by a concealed steel tube housing a spiral staircase, which provides both stability and vertical access across each level of the house. Alongside the steel cylinder, an L-shaped brace reinforces the back end of the house, paired with a steel beam along the roof that connects to a tension cable anchored in the ground. This setup stabilizes lateral loads—a structural solution that exemplifies the architectural vision of Koolhaas and engineer Cecil Balmond, who designed these concealed elements to create the illusion of a floating volume.

Maison Bordeaux is a groundbreaking architectural achievement that surpassed the expectations of its clients. Although it remains a private residence without public access, the house stands as a landmark in contemporary architecture, embodying Rem Koolhaas’s vision of “a machine for living.” Through its unique blend of complex spatial design, innovative accessibility solutions, and structural ingenuity, Maison Bordeaux continues to be celebrated for its architectural innovation and its transformative approach to residential design.