House in Italy

Situated in Lazio, the house is based on traditional, local forms of construction, with stone walls, a flat-pitched roof and gable walls that extend up above the roof slopes. The layout isbased on a 5.40 ? 5.40 m grid. The main circulation area is on the lower level on the valley side. From a two-storey courtyard, whichserves as an open reception hall, there isaccess to the office and the utility spaces. Thefirst-floor living area is directly linked with aground-level terrace on the upper side of thebuilding. The house hasan earthquake-resistant reinforced concrete skeleton-frame structure with brick infill panels and an outer skin of squared tuff blocks. The thermal storage mass of the walls helps to avoid extremes of temperature in summer and winter.