Christophe Piqué, a distinguished French architect and Europe 40under40 award winner, graduated from ENSA Marseille in 2013 and spent 12 years as an associate at MOA Architecture, leading projects from conception to delivery. In 2024, he founded Piqué Architecture in Paris, a practice dedicated to innovative, sustainable spaces that serve life through flexible, context-rooted designs. Emphasizing restrained architecture with local materials like stone, wood, and earth, he crafts adaptable, low-impact environments—generous frameworks that evolve with users, prioritize well-being, and balance creativity with environmental responsibility.
GDN: What are the principles guiding your architectural projects?
Christophe Piqué: Our projects are guided by an iterative working process, designed to provide the most accurate response to each specific challenge. Every project is approached on a tailor-made basis: all options are carefully analyzed in relation to the program, the specific needs, and the budget, in order to deliver architecture that is perfectly adapted to its context. Our goal is to offer users a complete spatial experience by creating places where people truly feel good, and where all the qualities of the site are fully revealed. We stand for an architecture that is felt as much as it is perceived, sometimes even unconsciously—spaces where it naturally feels good to live.
GDN: How do you balance environmental consciousness with client needs in your submitted work?
Christophe Piqué: For us, environmental consciousness is inseparable from this pursuit of well-being. Comfort comes from both the physical quality of space and the way it is perceived. When we speak about the environment, we mainly refer to the passive performance of the building: proper orientation, well-designed openings, appropriate heating systems, and precise insulation all contribute to creating naturally comfortable spaces. Places where it is neither too hot nor too cold, and where the architectural experience can be fully lived without any concern for thermal comfort.
GDN: How has receiving the Europe 40under40 award influenced your approach to future projects?
Christophe Piqué: For us, environmental consciousness is inseparable from this pursuit of well-being. Comfort comes from both the physical quality of space and the way it is perceived. When we speak about the environment, we mainly refer to the passive performance of the building: proper orientation, well-designed openings, appropriate heating systems, and precise insulation all contribute to creating naturally comfortable spaces. Places where it is neither too hot nor too cold, and where the architectural experience can be fully lived without any concern for thermal comfort.
GDN: What legacy do you hope your generation of architects leaves behind?
Christophe Piqué: I hope our generation will be the one to move away from the star-system, a period during which some architects sometimes harmed the profession by isolating themselves from other stakeholders, adopting the posture of an all-powerful master who knows everything and needs no one. Architecture, on the contrary, must be nourished by the knowledge of all its contributors, with everyone working hand in hand toward a common goal: creating high-quality spaces for the benefit of all. Architects can also step back and produce simple, meaningful architecture. It is essential to return to a certain form of humility and to a genuine desire to work for the common good. Architecture must remain a matter of public interest.
