- Project: La Grange Rouge House
- Architect: Sigurd Larsen
- Location: France, Dordogne
- Year: 2024
- Area: 350 m2
- Photography: Sigurd Larsen
A Reinvention of Rural Heritage
La Grange Rouge is a contemporary reinterpretation of a traditional French barn (grange) in the Dordogne countryside. Designed by Sigurd Larsen, the house preserves the character of stone walls and timber structure while introducing a refined minimal interior, generous glazing, and a strong connection to landscape. The red clay hues of the existing masonry inspired its name—“rouge”—and inform a modern architectural identity rooted in terroir.
Built largely from local stone, timber, and glass, the renovation merges old and new into a cohesive whole that respects context while commanding a modern presence.
Spatial Organization & Design Strategy
The plan organizes itself along a central volume, flanked by wings that accommodate living, sleeping, and service zones. The volume aligns with views toward the rolling landscape, while retaining a quiet, inward focus in parts.
A double-height living hall with a mezzanine acts as the spatial fulcrum. From here, circulation branches outward to private suites, a kitchen wing, and terraces. Indoor and outdoor thresholds are softened by generous overhangs and covered loggias that frame the façades.
Much of the existing barn fabric has been preserved: stone walls, structural timbers, and roof form. Into this shell are inserted crisp new volumes, glazed joints, and minimalist detailing that let the old structure speak.
Material Palette & Expression
La Grange Rouge’s material palette is rooted in the region:
- Local stone anchors the façades, walls, and retaining elements
- Timber beams and rafters are restored and extended
- Slate roofing is reused and patched with new material of matching character
- Large glazed sections connect generous terraces to interiors
- Interior finishes—polished concrete, white plaster, oak floors—contrast with rough stone to highlight texture and light
Where stone is rough and grounded, glass and timber bring lightness. The interplay emphasizes the building’s dual identity as relic and new home.
Light, Views & Atmosphere
Light is filtered through large vertical windows and narrow slit openings that punctuate stone walls. The double-height space catches sky above the ridge, while lower wings invite morning and evening sun. At dusk, the warm tones of red masonry are softly illuminated, giving life to the structure in its rural setting.
The terraces are intentionally tucked to observe and contain views—vernal meadows, wooded hills, the sloping horizon. Through these framed views, the house becomes part of the landscape rather than apart from it.
A Harmonious Rural Rebirth
With La Grange Rouge House / Sigurd Larsen / France, architecture becomes a bridge between past and present. The project does not erase the old barn; instead, it reanimates it—adapting it for contemporary living while amplifying its memory and material presence.
The result is a home that is both expressive and understated, rooted in stone and open to landscape, timeless in its gestures yet precise in its intention.
Drawings
