Login
Registered users
The brilliance of white stone dominates this project that brings back the allure of ancient places and traditions
Carlo Gaspari Architetto has designed a home set among the ravines and gullies of Abruzzo in a location that overlooks the village of Serramonacesca, in the province of Pescara. An essential design and carefully selected materials create a dialogue between the modern and traditional in this project, the result of the restoration of an existing building.
The key source of inspiration for the home was its view of the San Liberatore a Majella Basilica. With its sculptural volumes and white stone façade illuminated by the sun, the basilica stands out in perfect harmony with the surrounding landscape of ancient livestock routes, and olive groves and wheat fields that follow the edges of roads once used by shepherds and their flocks. All around are ravines and gullies – powerful natural sculptures of stone that give shape to the hilly landscape and mark the path to this house located in the foothills.
To respect the purity of the building’s bare internal spaces and white stone volumes, the architect took an essential approach free from anything superfluous. The design is the result of subtraction, with the primary aim of keeping additions and modifications to a minimum.
The existing building had become weighed down by plaster and wooden structures that hid its original elements. The first phase therefore involved removing superfluous additions and allowing the original structure to re-emerge. Next came a careful analysis of the volumes to determine what work needed to be done to complete the existing building and the most suitable elements for this purpose, such as the spa and bathrooms in the first volume, and the mass of the fireplace intended to create balance in the central volume.
The many openings that dotted the building blurred the boundaries between its spaces. The decision was therefore made to close off several of them, with this move also benefiting the building structurally. The work on the interiors left the articulation of the volumes unchanged but modified their functions, with the exception of the central section, where a mezzanine floor was demolished to create a double-height space.
The fulcrum of the project is its central section, with the ground-level floor acting as the main entrance and location for the dining area table, next to the existing fireplace, which has been remodeled and restored. On one side, this section connects with the living room and the guest bedroom; on the other, with the lower volume, where the kitchen, plant room, and a second bedroom are located. The second floor, accessed by a metal staircase, is home to the master bedroom and a spa bathroom.
The materials used have strong links to local craft traditions and the colors of the landscape. In particular, lime milk was used to highlight the original sections of the building, eliminate existing additions, and allow the ancient stone and brick walls to breathe better. Intended to create a dialogue between the old and new, the finish on the new wall partitions establishes an unexpected bond between apparent opposites.
The same logic was applied to the interiors to highlight the historical elements. The floors and paving are local white stone, with the exception of the bedroom floors, which are oak with white stone inserts between the joints. These are oriented outwards to create lines of perspective that connect with the surrounding landscape.
White stone is the unifying element between inside and out. Black iron is then incorporated into the design through elements such as the oculus and balcony, the staircase, and chimneys, adding an innovative touch that simultaneously harmonizes with the context.
>>> Discover also Casa Credai, designed by Andrea Dal Negro in Trentino region
Location: Serramonacesca, Pescara, Italy
Completion: 2023
Area: 143 m2
Client: Private
Architect: Carlo Gaspari Architetto
Photography by Iacopo Pasqui, Courtesy of Carlo Gaspari Architetto
