Nicolas Michelin

Nicolas Michelin (born on 25 January 1955 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France) is a French architect and urban planner. After joining forces with Finn Geipel to form LABFAC in 1985, he went on to found ANMA (Agence Nicolas Michelin & Associés) in 2000, which he currently runs in collaboration with his partners Michel Delplace and Cyril Trétout.

Born in 1955 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Nicolas Michelin studied physics and mathematics at Paris VI University before beginning his studies in architecture at the École d’Architecture de Paris-Conflans from where he graduated from in 1980.

In 1985 Nicolas Michelin, along with fellow architect Finn Geipel, founded the architecture firm LABFAC, working between Paris and Berlin. Some of the most notable projects from this collaboration included the École des Beaux Arts in Limoges and the Théâtre de Quimper.

In 2000, he founded ANMA - Agence Nicolas Michelin & Associés (Nicolas Michelin partnered with Michel Delplace and Cyril Trétout), which provides innovative solutions in architecture, urban design and landscaping. He developed ANMA's approach which is based on five guiding principles: ultra-contextuality, lightness, "natural" energy savings, adaptability and the extraordinary ordinary. All of ANMA's designs are unique and tailored to each project’s specific needs.

Nicolas Michelin is leading the way in the field of “ultra-contextuality”. He coined this term in order to refer to the seamless integration of buildings into their surroundings. According to ANMA's founder, a good building "is designed around existing forces, (...) magnifies the site (...) and places greenery in the foreground" (Source: Cinq sur cinq - Dix projets sur mesure, Editions Archibooks, 2008). The firm's projects, all of which apply the concept of ultra-contextuality and the genius loci, seek to enhance the surrounding area by revealing their singularity. The combination of these two factors allows Michelin to create what he calls the “extraordinary ordinary”, buildings which "initially give the impression of the ordinary (...) in an unusual sense, but which at a second glance reveal a singular and contemporary design" (Source: Cinq sur cinq - Dix projets sur mesure).

...
Wikipedia