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Architecture, sculpture and poetic expression – creating a new lighthouse typology for Lake Geneva, Switzerland.
The guiding light in a storm. The warmth of home. Finding solid ground after drifting through unrelenting waves. Among all built structures, lighthouses have a specific kind of poetic substance that instantly awakens a sense of both safety and permanence. With Phare Ylliam, multidisciplinary practice Bureau rewrites the well-known story of the classic lighthouse to reimagine the familiar building as a modern structure that also plays with the concepts of solidity and transparency. To create the contemporary take on the lighthouse typology, the studio, took inspiration from the hyperboloid structures of Vladimir Shukhov, Luis Peña Ganchegui’s Plaza del Tenis in San Sebastian, and the Comb of the Wind sculptures by Eduardo Chillida.
Located on the shores of Lake Geneva, Switzerland, the lighthouse is an architectural intervention that enhances the serene character of the lake and harbor while referencing the quiet beauty of the landscape. Exploring the concepts of transparency and solidity, the intentionally infrastructural design features a solid mineral foundation that gives a nod to the surrounding terrain, and a light structure that plays with the idea of evanescence.
The lighthouse boasts three levels, each offering a different interactive experience. The base houses a living space that provides immersive views of the lake, while the second level is a boat-like, glass cabin with panoramic vistas of the harbor. At the top, the lantern features a built-in adjustment system that allows the raising or the lowering of the light. Dynamic, modern and as poetic as its ancient counterparts, Bureau‘s design is an architectural landmark as well as an unwavering guiding light. Photography by Dylan Perrenoud.
