historic stone farmhouse in idyllic italy revitalized by andrew trotter

picturesque in puglia

Barcelona-based Studio Andrew Trotter unveils a newly completed renovation dubbed ‘Casolare Scarani,’ located far out amongst the countryside of Puglia. The project came about after the architect and his friend discovered the historic house by chance while driving through Carovigno, and recognized it from a listing. ‘The house was beautiful, old, with so much character, and not too big.’ Trotter tells designboom.

Although the house had been neglected for years, it had an undeniable charm with its rusticated stonework and dramatic interior vaulting. The two friends resolved that the house be sensitively revitalized through a modern lens to become a serene retreat in the Italian countryside.

images © Salva López | @salvalopez

Casolare Scarani: the farmhouse villa

Studio Andrew Trotter’s Casolare Scarani is found in the countryside of Puglia. This area is typically dotted with small lamias, which are stone sheds used to store equipment, and large masserias, historic farmhouses which were once owned by wealthy landowners. ‘It was quite unusual to come across a building that had the style of a masseria, but the size of a small villa,’ studio founder Andrew Trotter explains.

‘We found out that the building was originally a school for girls, and had quite a history with the locals. It was abandoned in the early 1960’s, and we lovingly brought it back to life. This one was a gem.’

While the design team was considering other projects when they discovered the house in Puglia, they decided not to purchase it for themselves. Instead, they recommended it to their clients who had fallen in love with it, as the architects knew they would. Following nine months of renovation, Casolare Scarani was completed.

the renovation by studio andrew trotter

Studio Andrew Trotter sensitively renovated the historic Italian farmhouse, ensuring that the exterior patina was preserved as much as possible. Together with the clients, the team spent days scraping off years of flaky paint, revealing the beautiful stone of the portico. The interiors were fully plastered, and a local artisan was employed to make his own lime plaster and lime paints. Along the flooring, the old stones were repositioned and new chianca stones were added to match. Meanwhile, the original garage was converted into a kitchen, the donkey house became a laundry room, and two new blocks were added to the rear of the house for two bedroom suites.

star vaulting in the living room is carefully preserved the flaking interior surfaces were stripped and re-plastered