- Urban design
As part of the second metro line construction project, Place Saint-Germain was redeveloped to accommodate a new station. The aim of the project was to transform the site into a pedestrian zone, with a weekly market, while at the same time enhancing the architectural heritage of one of the city’s oldest churches, the Eglise Saint-Germain.
At the heart of this redevelopment, the city of Rennes wanted water to be present in the form of a water mirror or fountain. In collaboration with the OGI design office, we designed a fountain with jets that attempts to meet three challenges:
– Reconcile a place of flow and a place to pause
– Evoke the presence of the Vilaine River
– Integrate the presence of water into the design of the square.
Visualization of the main traffic routes on Place Saint-Germain.
In the 17th century, when the Place Saint-Germain had not yet reached its present dimensions, the Vilaine River meandered through the center of Rennes. As shown on the map below, it made two bends and divided into three parts: the first ran along the city’s southern ramparts, and two streams extended to the south-west. This occupation by water made the town subject to frequent flooding. It enabled various economic activities, such as tanneries, pigsties and slaughterhouses, to set up close to the water, but this concentration led to pollution and insalubrity.
In the mid-19th century, work was undertaken to canalize the river in order to clean up the town and make it navigable. Whereas the Vilaine used to border the Saint-Germain district, the new canal draws a straight line and makes this meander disappear. This meander extended over part of the Quai Chateaubriand as we know it today.
Archives of the city of Rennes. Plan of the city, surveyed by F. Forestier after the fire of 1726. Although this project was not fully realized, the plan shows the location of the Vilaine canalization and its former meander under Place Saint-Germain.With a view to integrating it into the square, we designed a fountain reminiscent of the passage of this meander. The design is composed of beige Huelgoat granite paving stones, the same material used to pave the square. The fountain features 13 jets. In summer, it is a space for misting and cooling. In winter, or on market days, it becomes a circulation space.
2022
Photo credits : Philippe Piron
Conception team :
Studio Idaë + OGI design office (Philippe Carton)
Production: CCA Perrot, Barthélémy et Rebillon
Sponsor: City of Rennes - Rennes Metropole
Home office: 17 rue Dombasle 75015 Paris
Workshop: 111bis rue Molière 94200 Ivry-sur-Seine
contact@studioidae.com
A multidisciplinary creative agency founded by Isabelle Daëron in 2018, Studio Idaë arose from a reflection on the use of natural flows — water, air, light — in public space.
The Studio has, ever since, developed an approach based on research and education, focusing on the urban, environmental and societal challenges of the ecological transition.
Driven by a poetical & committed team of designers, Studio Idaë applies its refined, assertive graphic signature to projects of various scales. From urban devices to mediation objects and supports, or scenography, the agency’s protean contributions always strive at others — their needs, their desires, and their evolution.
The agency operates within a network of local companies and collaborates with dedicated craftspeople to adapt to the specific characteristics of each territory. Together, they work towards the most appropriate and relevant response — between narration and mediation.
Graphic design : Audrey Templier
Web development : Francis Josserand
Designer and design researcher, Isabelle Daëron graduated from the École Supérieure d’Art et de Design in Reims in 2005 and the École Nationale Supérieure de Création Industrielle in Paris in 2009. She founded Studio Idaë based on her reflections on the use of natural flows—water, air, light—in public spaces. At the heart of the agency’s work, her practice of drawing and narrative opens up the imagination and a sensitive understanding of environments and their resources.
Pauline Avrillon, a graduate of the École Boulle (DSAA product design and DMA carpentry), has been working with Isabelle Daëron since 2016, even before the studio was founded. As a senior project manager, Pauline has a particular interest in materials and manufacturing processes that contribute to resilient and innovative public spaces. She is involved in urban development projects, as well as projects combining mediation and territory.
A graduate of Ensci-Les Ateliers, Nina Capron joined the team in 2024. Within the studio, she is developing expertise in spatial design projects. She pays particular attention to the narrative and educational challenges inherent in the creation of scenography and installations.
Julie Deloraine, a graduate designer from Esad Saint-Etienne, joined the studio in 2025. By collaborating on set design projects, Julie meticulously develops the graphic and visual aspects of our creations, as a means of making them accessible to all.
Eléna Hervé Caro has been Studio Idaë’s office manager since 2023. A trained designer (graduate of the Design Academy Eindhoven and École Boulle), she oversees the administrative and logistical aspects of the studio’s activities. Convinced of the impact of teamwork and the power of good planning, she contributes to upholding the values of the studio and the entire ecosystem.
They took part in the studio’s projects: Lucie Blanchot, Angèle Fourteau, Chad Garçon, Dalva Rosepape, Nicolas Vuillerme, Elise Teiller, Pia Debray Sandelin, Jonathan Roditi, Caroline Manowicz, Victoria Gravelier, Floriane Roué, Ambroise Jugan, Julie Arnaud, Charlotte Baverel, Simon Frajer, Lita Gomez Carrera, Anne-Claire Hostequin, Camille Demouge, Julien Peraldi, Jonathan Coat, Adèle Nyitrai, Elizabeth Hong, Mathilde Vaillant, Nina Chalot, Julie Arnaud.
Studio Idaë welcomed the following interns: Charlotte Tirard, Margaux Thuilliez, Alice Babot, Julie Deloraine, Marie Avezard, Garance Delavallade, Jaemo Lee, Audrey Solans, Béatrice Baillard, Pia Debray Sandelin, Thibaut Caudal, Léa Michielin, Yalhma Robette, Adriana Goepp, Mélany Savoie, Marie Lecommandoux, Ethen Ben Abda, Mathilde Vaillant, Florian Meca, Tiffany Silve, Nina Capron, Justine Chagnaud, Monika Olszak, Tom Garçon, Éléonore Gold-Dalg, Lucile Girard, Valentin Aubois-Liogier, Bastien Lafont, Chad Garçon, Marie-Ève Millasseau, Marie-Sarah Adenis, Louise Raguet, Camille Jégo, Claire Aubadie-Ladrix, Fleur Moreau.