onomiau
An honest approach
Paris, FR

Onomiau (Office for Nomadic Architecture) is a pop primitive architectural and design practice created in 2019 by Noël Picaper. Based currently in Paris, the studio experiments a playful and relaxed style of spatial interventions that at the same time respects the symbolism of primitive architecture, constantly trying to explore new ways of architectural production.

 

Obtaining autonomy as an architect

Since my architectural diploma in Strasbourg I have designed a great number of "architectural characters". Some will evolve, some are just concepts and others are waiting to be built. Onomiau is in a way the theatre in which they can perform plays. After rich professional experiences in Zurich, Tokyo and Paris, I quickly felt the need to go back to my stories and to continue the drawings I had started before. I won three big Japanese competitions in 2016, 2018 and 2019. After that I decided to fly with my own wings.

 

Projecting true innocence 

I try to develop an architecture that embodies at the same time the playful aspect of the ubiquitous pop culture and the uncanny symbolic of primitive form. 

The winter pavilion: « Droombok » built in 2020 in Winnipeg for the warming huts festival is an example of this intention. I attach great importance to humour in my architectural process. It is a long way to design a good joke. Being quite young, I may be a bit naïve, but I think that this kind of innocence can become a positive project posture.

 

Building a solid network

For the moment, I've had more difficulty than I thought in finding small private commissions, which has led me to apply for pavilion competitions, public scenography, installations for fest, etc. Thanks to that, I’ve met great people (carpenters, metalworkers, associations, designers…) and I’ve produced micro-architectures with maybe more freedom as if I had been renovating an interior for someone. All paths are good for being able to express oneself. Architecture has the advantage of having by nature a problem within its definition. This allows us to constantly explore new ways of producing it.

 

Building a scalable practice

I would like to continue to develop my architectural obsessions while trying to incorporate them into larger programs. I'm interested in all scales (from the big territory to the domestic world) and I hope to have the opportunity to work on all of them. In a more distant future I would also like to teach. I am passionate about transmission. It is during these moments of exchange that memories, ideas and intentions are ingrained in our brain to stay there forever. It happened to me...

Photo Noel Picaper new copper photography copie Noel Picaper

Photography New Copper Photography

Photo Sakari Buster 1st Prize Central Glass Competition Japan Noel Picaper Noel Picaper

Photography Sakari Buster

Photo La Chimere photo B.Salmanski Noel Picaper

Photography B. Salmanski

Photo La Chimere Noel Picaper Noel Picaper

Photography Noel Picaper

Photo Droombok Noel Picaper 1 Noel Picaper

Photography Noel Picaper

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