Mikoü Architectures

Mikoü is an architecture office founded by Selma and Salwa Mikou, French-Moroccan architects from Fez, Morocco. Since 2008, the studio, based in Paris, has explored architectural form, adaptability, and buildings as urban catalysts. Our work aims to enhance social interactions through amplified architecture, where spaces activate diverse uses. We are interested in the rituals of daily life, viewing architecture as a way to inspire new ways of living. Guided by the philosophy of Superstudio, Mikoü sees architecture as a space awaiting ceremony. We build culture with our stories and those of our clients. Each project invokes sensory and aesthetic experiences, often connecting to collective memory and the invisible layers of a place. The unspoken, pre-existing elements of a site enrich their vision, shaping architectural narratives. Our designs transcend functionality, offering experiences shaped by material dichotomies—lightness, density, mass, and color. Committed to contextual ecology, Mikoü focuses on material efficiency, local resources, and innovative construction systems that harmonize with traditional materials. Our architecture reflects a multicultural, inclusive vision of the contemporary city. We explore the intersection of craftsmanship and technology, revisiting historical techniques in new ways. In recent years, Mikoü has led research on ecological and low-carbon construction through prefabrication and assembly, combining technological innovation, bio-based materials, and artisanal expertise to offer alternative construction models. Mikoü sees itself as a “manufacture of architecture,” integrating architecture, engineering, and technology in a “total design” approach. Recent projects include the Aquazena sports center in Issy-les-Moulineaux, Simone Veil High School in Boulogne-Billancourt, Bordeaux Belcier mixed-use building, Balsan’éo Aquatic Center, a residential tower in Nanterre, and the renovation of Yves Saint Laurent’s studio in Paris.