Identification and mapping of the quieter spaces of Paris in order to highlight the potential of embracing silence in urban areas
PROJECT PRESENTATION
The buzz of car traffic, the roaring of jet engines, the rustling of trains… Paris is a city where silence is a rare thing. According to the World Health Organization, when we take into account all the noise generated by traffic, around half of the European Union’s citizens live in areas that don’t provide adequate levels of acoustic comfort. Noise is typically so pervasive in cities that we tend to forget how much it affects us, both psychologically and physically. As silence in urban settings is conditional on sound absorption by buildings, it is hard to find quiet public spaces.
Quiet Spaces is a project that aims to identify, catalog, and highlight the quiet spots of Paris, i.e., the places where the annual average environmental noise levels are below 45 dB(A), following the definition established by BruitParif, the research institute and observatory of noise in the Île-de-France region. Quiet Spaces is an urban experience. It is in line with a transformation of the metropolis into a space focused on the well-being of its residents.
This project expands on research on noise pollution, originally explored in 2018, that was based on the first animated maps drafted in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, as well as a second mapping project from 2020, which compared data from 2019 and the first Paris lockdown in five specific locations.
The buzz of car traffic, the roaring of jet engines, the rustling of trains… Paris is a city where silence is a rare thing. According to the World Health Organization, when we take into account all the noise generated by traffic, around half of the European Union’s citizens live in areas that don’t provide adequate levels of acoustic comfort. Noise is typically so pervasive in cities that we tend to forget how much it affects us, both psychologically and physically. As silence in urban settings is conditional on sound absorption by buildings, it is hard to find quiet public spaces.
Quiet Spaces is a project that aims to identify, catalog, and highlight the quiet spots of Paris, i.e., the places where the annual average environmental noise levels are below 45 dB(A), following the definition established by BruitParif, the research institute and observatory of noise in the Île-de-France region. Quiet Spaces is an urban experience. It is in line with a transformation of the metropolis into a space focused on the well-being of its residents.
This project expands on research on noise pollution, originally explored in 2018, that was based on the first animated maps drafted in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, as well as a second mapping project from 2020, which compared data from 2019 and the first Paris lockdown in five specific locations.
PROJECT TEAM
Clémence Althabegoïty
Clémence Althabegoïty is a Paris-based designer and plastic artist. She graduated from the Centre for Research Architecture at Goldsmiths College in London in 2019, from the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris in 2018, and the Design Academy Eindhoven in 2016. Drawing from context analysis and research into materials, she designs objects, spaces, and environments. Her practice is geared towards creating alternative solutions, raising awareness, and thinking critically about issues such as pollution (noise, air, and ground) and water scarcity. By building on the unique properties of the materials used, each project turns into an opportunity to explore new media and create works that are specific to a given place.
Clémence Althabegoïty
Clémence Althabegoïty is a Paris-based designer and plastic artist. She graduated from the Centre for Research Architecture at Goldsmiths College in London in 2019, from the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Paris in 2018, and the Design Academy Eindhoven in 2016. Drawing from context analysis and research into materials, she designs objects, spaces, and environments. Her practice is geared towards creating alternative solutions, raising awareness, and thinking critically about issues such as pollution (noise, air, and ground) and water scarcity. By building on the unique properties of the materials used, each project turns into an opportunity to explore new media and create works that are specific to a given place.
