After having completed the Rennes crematorium, Plan 01 has continued to discuss a project which involves the architect in the most sensitive and rich areas of the architectural process.
These are areas which help convey the ethical meaning of discipline.

Faced with the emotional intensity of a cremation ceremony, we offer an architectural creation which proposes a space that can be interpreted and adopted differently by each person.

This results in a project which is based on the theme of the circle as a symbol - universal and timeless - intended to represent secular spirituality in the collective imagination.

The building is a collection of cylindrical spaces laid out in a clearing.

The two ceremony rooms surround a hall and a patio which are provided for different sized ceremonies. Each group can access the viewing room and the room for handing out the ashes through the ceremony rooms. As a direct extension of the ceremony rooms, the meeting rooms are set out so that they can naturally become extensions of the ceremony spaces. The building is very modular and is partitioned simply and swiftly with specific fabric drapes. Each section has its own waiting room and service space which surround the main ceremony rooms.

Each room is independent and respects the intimacy of the other. Whilst there is a sole entrance, the exits are independent and separate. This approach helps manage visitors’ arrivals and exits from rooms, avoiding any sudden, embarrassing meetings between different families.
Our approach arranges these matters at a time when we do not wish to be controlled by overly strict guidelines.
In the same manner, there is no crossover between the ceremonial and "service" spaces, which are independent.

The main central hall is the focus of the ceremony, including both the hall itself and the movement: there are no hallways but fluid spaces which are lit with natural light through the ceiling or through the windows between the rooms.
This helps avoid the feeling of being closed in which is often experienced during this type of event.
The spaces are handled in a resolutely contemporary, warm yet simple manner. Light and clear, to emphasise the landscaped setting which surrounds the buildings.
The dominant characteristics are light and golden aspects with sculpted concrete which draws out the shadows and the light: continuous flooring, white drapes, clear glass, a white and gold underside which provides indirect and softened lighting;