The Patios of OKABE, Interior-Exterior

The “OKABE” building is located on an important trunk road linking Paris and the Kremlin Bicêtre: the departmental road 7 or avenue de Fontainebleau. This very busy road is at the centre of a dense urban fabric that has few green outdoor spaces.

OKABE is a mixed-purpose building and combines a commercial centre of the same name on 2 levels, outdoor shops, public and private parking on 3 levels and offices on 5 levels. At the heart of the building, two large patios at levels 2 and 3 enable the building to offer some peaceful corners in this dense urban fabric.

The palm patio is located at the main entrance of the lobby, lifts and stairs. Cocooning and representation have to work together to represent both the company and the special attention paid to its employees: a set of plant screens creates a series of spaces conducive to relaxation or outdoor meetings.

The time-scale of office use makes it possible to put in place luminous elements which decorate the patio in winter and offer a second vision of the site, which may be perceived as playful, mysterious or poetic.