Status
In progress
Date
2020
Location
Ebel el Saqi, Lebanon
Team
Fouad Samara
Jad Abi Fadel
Lara Alam
Nohad Bechara
Maria Tarchichy
Jad Abi Fadel
Lara Alam
Nohad Bechara
Maria Tarchichy
The stone house
Within the middle of a large plot of terraced land in Ebel El Saqi sits a modest and delicate house; straddling a large rock and dating back to the turn of the twentieth century. We wanted to build on the sophisticated simplicity that characterizes much of traditional, and especially rural, architecture and landscapes in Lebanon; and work within the agricultural heritage of the land with its century old terraces. This, while knowing full well that the need for more functions required to transform the existing house into a country house for a growing family will necessitate the construction of a certain extension.
Accessed off its south east corner and down a gently sloping path, the land and valley across are gradually revealed through mature pine and walnut trees. At first slightly visible and just below the tree line, the old house is arrived at naturally, before having the rest of the land and views down the valley then revealed from it.
Components of the traditional residential architecture, especially in rural areas in Lebanon, include the a’arisha – vine, dashak – built in bench, a’aqid – vault that was usually built into the terraces, and stayha – terrace.
The intervention
The existing house is restored to its original uncluttered rectangular form with the add-on removed, becoming one large room – the great hall – that includes the open kitchen, dining, and living space enjoying a high ceiling and clerestory lighting all round from a new raised roof. This provides spatial luxury and celebrates the character of the existing house.
Accessed off a new stair carved into the floor of the existing house and reminiscent of the a’aqid inserted within the existing terraces a floor below – but here shifted to one side – is a new concrete volume that houses the bedrooms and support functions; all opening up onto a flagstone covered part of the terraces that lead to the rest of the land from there.
A large patio door is created between the existing house and the terrace that is the roof of the new extension. This new terrace is the main space used during fair weather, and can be accessed directly off the entrance path. The terrace – stayha – has a vine covering the sitting area – an a’arisha, and a long bench – a dashak – that doubles in this case as a skylight. The stayha terminates with a pool and access beyond it to the land below.
While the new additions have their own presence and integrity, they seek not to compete with the old house. Like the concrete extension inserted within the existing terraces, the clerestory added above the existing stone house differentiates between old and new, allowing light in during the day and becoming a welcoming beacon after dark.