Les Chaumes. Dreamlike creatures made of straw inhabit the forest

Les Chaumes, literally "the stubbles", are three creatures with an appearance between animal and human that seem to meet in the center of the forest, in a totemic circle that appears to await visitors. Approaching them reveals their volumetric dimension that allows you to enter and play by wearing them

Architecture as clothing, protection, and tradition

Les Chaumes is one of the latest architecture projects by Atelier Yok Yok; their appearance evokes a gathering of forest beings in a dreamlike atmosphere. The three works embody different archetypes that architecture carries: clothing, as self-expression and protection from the outside; vernacular architecture as the origin of dwelling; the totem as a landmark and focal point of attention, etc. By entering the three "inhabitable" creatures, one can become giants covered in bristly straw and return to being children by hiding in their protective bellies

Reusing Thatch, a New Resource

For the construction of Les Chaumes, Yok Yok wanted to work with local materials and preferably recycled ones. Thatch, meaning the thatching derived from hollow plant stems such as cereals or reeds, traditionally used in Norman roofs, is a perfect material: it is natural and available in the area even through the reuse of old abandoned roofs. The reuse of materials so delicate due to their biodegradable nature is still a non-existent action in today's architecture: Les Chaumes, with its structure, wants to assert that it is indeed possible

The structure of Les Chaumes

Les Chaumes is an ephemeral and delicate work that respectfully integrates into the forest where it will be hosted for about two years as part of the event Foreste Monumentali. The main structure of the three volumes is made of wood cut into curved profiles, treated with a handmade product that protects it from moisture, mold, and insects composed of flour, linseed oil, black soap, iron sulfate, and natural pigments. Tied with natural sisal twine, the bamboo canes create the secondary framework; onto this, bundles of recovered straw are fixed from bottom to top, to ensure the drainage of rainwater