This beautiful project focuses on the restoration and expansion of a farmhouse by A2BC Studio on the terraced hillside of Cinque Terre in Liguria, Italy. The main emphasis of the project is on the recovery and emphasis of original materials and construction techniques in a contemporary perspective. The main house has fully retained its structure and distribution while incorporating contemporary elements in substitution for the parts of the building that were not recoverable due to advanced stages of deterioration.

New concrete paving unifies the spaces of the house, white plaster for the interior highlights the stone on the original bearing walls, and the new black window frames create a balanced contrast with the interiors of the house and the framing of the landscape. The furniture is refined yet simple, as it plays on the combination of recovered and modern pieces, using colors that recall those of the surrounding landscape.

The restoration of the main house is complemented by the reconstruction of the adjacent barn, of which only the foundation remained. A simple volume of split stone, typical of Liguria, is hollow to allow for a generous full-height opening towards the sea, whose adjustable brise soleil, the typical Genoese shutters, allow regulation of the light throughout the day. Inside, the smallest spaces, the ‘garden rooms’ (the surface is approximately equal to Le Corbusier’s Cabanon at Cap-Martin) has no more than a bed, water closet, sink, and shower. The scheme is repeated on two floors.