Courtyard House of Stone
Nature and relating to the landscape have a fundamental role in this work. Starting from an unfinished structure, that was built in the '80s and then abandoned, the architects worked by subtraction, eliminating the irrelevant architecture parts and bringing the structure back to its essential elements.
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The final product shows great lightness, where each part works with the other with a balanced and harmonious result.
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The main project points are protecting and restoring the existing underground courtyard bounded by limestone walls and preserving the charming centuries-old carob tree, guardian of the place, integrating it in the landscape and architectural project.
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The house entrance is accessible both by a pedestrian avenue through the garden and a driveway that is integrated into the greenery. The stone staircase, carved into the wisely recovered calcarenite rock, is particularly charming and it gradually leads to the inner courtyard that gives access to the house.
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The project pays attention to the garden design using a rationalist approach in some parts and a more organic line where necessary, always protecting the landscape integrity.
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The house is divided into two levels: on the ground floor, it hosts the living area and a comfortable guest room, while on the first floor there are a recreational living room, the bedrooms and two large terraces from which you can admire the villa's garden and the charming landscape of Sicily.
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On the outside, the basement is characterized by the endless charm of the hand-made Cotto and its burnished tones, which was chosen for its opacity and transmits an image of strength, in contrast with the withe plaster used in the prospects, wich instead enhances the pure geometry of the volumes and the interplay of shadows created by the Mediterrane light.
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The indoors are characterized by outstanding brightness given by natural light. The living area on the ground floor, illuminated by a big wall that is made of sliding doors, guarantees the spatial continuity between the house indoor and the porch, which turn into a natural extension of the living room during the summer.
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