Black Residence and White Residence

Architecture practice Startup Architettura, led by Sara Grignani and Jacopo Avenoso, has completed two contiguous residences in the well-known coastal resort of Alassio on the Ligurian riviera. Called White Residence and Black Residence, they share the same design principles of ensuring sustainability, quality, and continuity between past and future. They differ, however, in color scheme, configuration, material texture, and elevation, to the point that together they form a sort of diptych: two “paintings” placed side by side for their assonance or dissonance, consistency or difference in an urban and natural landscape characterized by hills to the north, the Ligurian sea to the south and railway tracks in the middle.

The White Residence stands on the site of a former hotel next to a paralepidid house on its southern flank. Although the original linear street-side frontage of the north elevation has been retained, it has been given a distinctively different aspect. The dense materiality and sparse, irregularly placed asymmetric windows give the façade the look of a defensive military construction – perhaps somewhat symbolic given its roadside position. The thickness of the walls is evidenced by the splayed windows, again in the manner of a defensive structure, albeit their outward slant allows light to enter the interior. In our contemporary understanding, this defensive structure can be read as protection and thermal insulation of the interiors. In fact, the concrete block outer wall is clad with EPS while the insulated internal wall is finished with plaster slabs.
Light-colored aluminum frames and glazed parapets at every window are fitting complements to the light-colored façade.

The compact mass of the north frontage is turned on its head on the south-facing side. Here, cantilevered floor slabs protect the extensive, full-height glazed surfaces facing the sea. The geometries of the recessed balconies and...

Proceed with your preferred purchase option to continue reading

Digital

5.49 €

Add to cart

Printed

15.00 €

Sold out

Subscription

From 42.00 €

Choose subscription