blankpage architects’ skyhaven villa wraps around hilltop valley in lebanon

ARC-SHAPED skyhaven residence ECHOES CLIFFSIDE CONTOURS

Situated on a hilltop in Lebanon’s Batroun region, BLANKPAGE Architects’ SKYHAVEN Residence is a villa envisioned as a balcony in nature. As it overlooks a lush valley with vistas towards the Mediterranean Sea, it projects from the cliff by means of concrete corbels, reducing the impact of excavation given the steep conditions of the site. In light of the topography and the scenic context, it espouses the contours of the cliffside with an arc-shaped plan, comprising two houses within one envelope: one for the client and another for his parents. Powered by an array of solar panels, the house additionally becomes fully autonomous during warm sunlit weather.

BLANKPAGE ARCHITECTS SPLITS two HOMES amid one envelope

BLANKPAGE Architects configures the common entrance to both sections of the SKYHAVEN Residence as a multipurpose, partially covered external space that commonly caters to the family’s spontaneous gatherings. Of the structure’s two disks, the lower is more solid, accommodating within it the bedrooms of both houses connected by a meditation room. This space encapsulates Japanese architecture with a raised wooden platform engulfed in by greenery. On top of that, fully glazed living areas and open kitchens enjoy unhindered views of nature, with sliding aluminum bays that transform the internal spaces into external, evoking the sensation of living on a belvedere. An arrival platform with an infinity pool above and a carpark below mediates between the access road and the main house by means of a ramp. The pool deck also connects via a bridge to the roof of the villa which serves as an additional open-air lounge.

The architects have constructed the villa’s base with an inner fair-faced concrete shell and an outer corrugated concrete one that lends it a mineral effect, serving as a backdrop for the rosemary plants stemming from between the two shells. The upper level is of a hybrid steel and concrete construction with a wing-profiled roof clad in white composite aluminum panels.

radial landscaping unites architecture and nature

The landscape masterplan is informed by both the geometry of the house and the topography of the site. Towards the valley, it radiates outward forming lawn terraces of varying width which slowly disappear into the prairie-like vegetation. A semi-buried office pavilion is inserted underneath the largest terrace with a green roof and a retractable skylight. On the other side, it ripples upwards organically, first with terraces delineated by Corten steel that become agricultural terraces with stone retaining walls.

project info:

name: SKYHAVEN Residence
architecture: BLANKPAGE Architects

design team: Walid Ghantous, Patrick Mezher, Omar Alameddine

location: Batroun region, Lebanon

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