Urban Ice Floe
Street Furniture
Paris 2019

Innovative street furniture is available to the general public to protect themselves during periods of extreme heat. The cooling island is connected to the City of Paris's cooling network, operated and developed by CLIMESPACE, a subsidiary of the ENGIE group.

Providing “refreshment” breaks in the city seems increasingly necessary to cope with the intense summer heat.

To fully experience this urban coolness, passersby must intuitively grasp the purpose of the device before even feeling the coolness: the design of the cool island must necessarily make sense. The ice floe cool island evokes a universal image. It doesn't require much explanation to guess its purpose. In the height of summer, it naturally invites city dwellers to come and settle there. It's a sensory invitation, where the desire to touch and walk through the cool stone plays a large part in the call to get closer.

Micro-perforated granite and solar-powered ventilation. Air blown through the cool granite creates a cooling zone, providing a welcome respite for street users during scorching weather.

First installation on the forecourt of the Palais de Tokyo and the Museum of Modern Art in Paris in August 2019.

Technical details

Design Loma (Johan Brunel & Nicolas Omet).

BET engineering Elioth - Egis Concept.

Granite: Caudron Marble Works

Shade: Selaneuf Saddlery

Metal and plumbing: SPAC

Handling and assembly: Ponticelli

Photos: Svend Andersen