VIB Architecture

Via this exhibition displaying the design and construction phases in parallel, VIB architecture presents a kaleidoscopic view of the schemes it has built across France since 2009. The firm founded by Bettina Ballus and Franck Vialet is opening up its offices and taking down the site screens and shares the results of its research into the laboratories of tomorrow. For once, these buildings of public interest will be open to the public. Because the protean nature of scientific inquiry means space must be continuously adaptable, these projects call for a versatile, three-dimensional architecture. The highly technical environment in which scientists work must not be an anonymous machine; rather, it must convey a strong and attractive image, identifiable around the world, while putting its users’ well-being to the fore. Only by incorporating time and human factors can buildings have life and meaning. VIB Architecture first gained recognition in 2005, when it won Le Moniteur magazine’s Prix de la Première Œuvre for the Neuroimaging Center in Caen. Since then, the firm has enhanced its reputation through several iconic projects, including one of its most singular designs, Silos 13 in Paris, delivered in 2014, and the new Neurocampus in Bordeaux, completed in 2016.