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Podere Panìco, Monteroni d’Arbia SI, Italy 
Fulvio Di Rosa, Restoration Architect, Tuscany, Italy

Design brief and aim:
The architect was entrusted with a complete restoration of a haybarn, including interior design, furnishings and an upgrade of the landscape by the Luxus Group – Edmonton, Canada.

How this was accomplished
The structure, which was part of a large estate, was conver­ted into a single-family holiday home, while retaining the network of supporting walls and the distribution and the size of the openings. The ground floor of the former haybarn is now home to a living area, a bathroom, a small gym and a corner sauna, whereas the upper level has two bedrooms. These spaces are characterized by the unusual appeal of the brickwork in the windows.

The kitchen/dining room area features three appropriately restored arches, whereas the terraces have been reinforced while replanting the missing olive trees. The exclusive use of original, old or handmade materials and the employiment of old-style construction methods give the space an original feel. The walls are either of exposed brick, or finished with plaster or lime paints. The cotto floors are complemented by ceilings with large supporting beams. The sinks were carved of solid stone.

Happily ever after:
In this project, the architect made the ancient and contemporary ‘talk to and complement each other’, without creating any kind of hierarchy between them.