Mobile architectural office (MAO)

The architecture of Fabien Brissaud, who founded the mobile architectural office (MAO) in Paris in 2010, stems from two attitudes toward space: one is a Cartesian and analytical approach, the other a sensitive and anthropological analysis. The agency's projects are, therefore, as much about the intangible nature of a place as its materiality and substance.

In order to do so, MAO insists on being present and wants to be "on-site" throughout the project from discovering the worksite, the conception, and right through to completion. Thereby, each building does not tell the story of its architecture but rather the story of the site itself, of its community, its neighborhood, its businesses, its schools.

This immaterial story, which includes light as well as sociological encounters, is transcribed by the architect through the materials, which are inspired by the spirit of the place, and their use in construction. Fabien Brissaud believes that the drawing, the quality of which is to be found in the smallest of details within the metalwork or even a handrail, is what makes architecture, never the materials alone.

Project 1 | Project 2 | Project 3