ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERIENCE DESIGN AND NATURAL LIGHT IN HOTEL ARCHITECTURE; CASE OF FERNAND POUILLON EL MOUNTAZAH HOTEL IN SERAIDI (ANNABA, ALGERIA).

In architecture, natural light plays a prominent and multidimensional role. It can structure the route one takes within a building as well as prioritize its different sequences and guide the user to follow a specific and ultimately welcoming route. The main objective of this research is to explore the variability of the luminous ambiences found within the routes of the hotel El Mountazah located in the coastal village of Seraidi the outskirts of Annaba, a large city in the (extreme northeast of Algeria,) and designed by the French architect Fernand Pouillon. The choice was made for hotel architecture as it is generally considered to be a unique experience for users who discover and live in various successive places. Each of these places is designed to create different ambiances and trigger diverse sensations. Moreover, Pouillon built several prominent hospitality projects throughout Algeria between 1966 and 1986, all of which were marked by an intricate play of light and building massing. Accordingly, this study explores: i) the luminous physical character (the types, the effects, and the forms of distribution of light in the space under study), as well as ii) its morphological character (openings, shape, depth, etc.). To this end, the approach relied on the qualitative methods based on field observations associated with the description of different sequences of routes identified beforehand by means of a survey carried out among hotel's users. Finally, the outcomes revealed that: i) the architectural conformation and openings design create the type and quality of light within the sequences of routes, ii) a gradient is visually perceptible from the light going from the opening to the depth of the space, and iii) the architectural space is subdivided in a sequential way through a sequential contrast of shadow and light.