Villa Rihana: a project inspired by the view of the horizon over the sea

Porcelain stoneware was widely used for the exterior flooring of this project, where the spotlight is on the Pietra di Baugè collection in Beige. The tiles were dry-laid on gravel, glued to the screed and raised in the exteriors.

We’re in an isolated area, away from urban centres, on the magical and mythological island of Malta, where you can admire a beautiful horizon over the sea.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

The functional, aesthetic, and energy redevelopment of this single-family home and its exterior spaces was entrusted to PERALTA Design & Consulting.

The main interventions consisted in the demolition of the enclosure walls, which were very close to the house, and the addition of new exterior areas with low dry stone walls, in line with the Maltese tradition, emphasising the spectacular view of the surroundings and the sea; the creation of a Mediterranean garden with olive and carob trees, as well as local and Mediterranean shrubland plants; a high-performance envelope with thermally broken high-performance glazing and windows with opaque surfaces; the addition of a new volume on the roof, and a new interior layout, which allowed the expansion of the living area towards the exteriors and the garden.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

The spectacular view of the sea suggested the addition of two regular-shaped “horizontal planes” parallel to the horizon. This was achieved through a cantileveredroof on top of the building and a “plateau” at the bottom, almost suspended over the surrounding landscape.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

The cantilevered roof covers and connects all the volumes and all the interior and exterior spaces, providing a new overall look. The roof overhang is quite large in some points (about 5 metres) and smaller in others. Moreover, it’s open in some points thus virtually continuing into the crown of the age-old olive trees in the nearby garden. This way, the roof not only creates new covered outdoor spaces sheltered from weather agents and sunlight, but also frames the breathtaking view of the surrounding landscape and houses special systems (lighting, loudspeakers, and CCTV cameras) efficiently and discreetly.

The “plateau”, also with a nearly square shape, defines the outdoor living area. It looks almost suspended above the surrounding landscape on the eastern and south-eastern sides, opening to the infinity pool on the northern and north-western sides, and overlooking the garden with large olive trees and Mediterranean shrubland plants on the western and south-western sides.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

The exterior flooring stands out for the extensive use of the stone effect porcelain stoneware tiles of the Pietra Baugè Beige collection. These tiles measure 60x60 cm, and 20 mm in thickness and are dry laid on gravel adjacent to the garden, glued to the screed on the “plateau” and laid on plastic feet in the ventilated covering of the terrace and roof.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

Pietra Baugè Beige laid on gravel with half-round edges where the cuts are made

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

Pietra Baugè Beige glued to the screed on the “plateau”

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

A series of trims has allowed for elegant details, including tiles with half-round edges where the cuts on the flooring are made to harvest rainwater and convey it towards the rainwater tank, as well as trims for the steps, the edges of the “plateau” and the infinity pool made using pieces with a 45-degree cut and glued with a 90-degree overhang.

Plateau with half-round tiles along the edges

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

Infinity edge

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

Assembled staircase

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

The porcelain stoneware tiles from the Pietra Baugè collection were chosen for their outstanding slip, stain, wear, abrasion, chemical, sea salt, frost, and thermal shock resistance, as well as their flexural strength and aesthetic qualities. The latter allows them to be harmoniously combined with other materials, such as Maltese dry stone walls, corten steel, siliceous gravel, bark mulch, Mediterranean plants, and swimming pool water. All this contributes significantly to the success of this project and its location in such a beautiful landscape.

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)

PH:@Alessandro Peralta (Ales&Ales)