The intervention site is situated in Liège at Place Saint-Etienne. While located not far from Place Saint-Lambert, an important traffic node, the site nevertheless remains calm and protected from the traffic. Public facilities were originally taking place on the square as well as Baar-Lecharlier, a listed building erected in the 16th century. In the early 2000s, the site reached its nowadays state after the demolition of these facilities. Surrounded by shops and restaurants, continuous pedestrian flows as well as regular events bring life to this area in the very heart of the city. Nowadays, the square is in a temporary state and is mainly characterized by a massive blind wall.

The project aspires to redefine the square by taking into account historical and urbanistic assets. The main challenge is to create a building that would revitalize the square without over-extending on the area. The removal of a non listed wing allows to release space for potential appropriation and bring a new atmosphere to the square. The project raises along the listed building in order to benefit the panoramic view that the site can offer.

The main goal inside the building is to foster creativity and innovation by offering adapted work areas and allowing the concretization of ideas through the different floors. The first couple of floors is dedicated to the discovery of the process. Then, the upper floors are dedicated to the innovation design and to prototyping. Eventually the exhibitions are at the ground floor.

The project can be defined as a floating object, intriguing by its shape, working in symbiosis or independently with the square. The object demonstrated a prefabricated structure covered by silkscreened glass. The facade cladding forms a continuous curtain, which physically link the project and the listed building while it creates an inside courtyard between them.