oversized reed roofs reinterpret the ukrainian mazanka in YOD group's guesthouses

"Traditional Ukrainian rural houses evolved through necessity and care, with thick plastered walls, periodic maintenance, and thatched roofs that required regular renewal. YOD Group distills this logic into a single architectural gesture. The oversized reed roof becomes both shelter and symbol, its exaggerated scale forming a silhouette that reads somewhere between a tall ceremonial hat and a mushroom rising from the landscape."

"'Our philosophy of terroir design goes beyond working with local materials or familiar forms - it is about uncovering the essence of a place and decoding its cultural meanings,' explains Volodymyr Nepiyvoda of YOD Group. Rather than presenting the mazanka as an image to be preserved, Under the Reed Roof treats it as a system of care, renewal, and an intimate relationship with climate and land."

"Where the historical mazanka pursued light through whiteness and order, the guesthouses pursue it through transparency. Fully glazed facades make the roof appear to hover above the terrain, particularly during daylight hours. The Kyiv-based team at YOD Group reframes the traditional house as a porous structure that remains in constant dialogue with its surroundings. Inside, the layout is organized around a central concrete core that contains the bathroom."

Under the Reed Roof guesthouses are compact 50-square-meter structures that reinterpret the traditional Ukrainian hata-mazanka by replacing opaque whitewashed walls with full-height glazing and amplifying a thatched reed roof into a dominant sculptural element. The oversized reed roof functions as both shelter and symbol, evoking ceremonial and organic silhouettes while embodying a logic of care, renewal, and relationship with climate and land. Transparency replaces whiteness as the primary light strategy, making the roof appear to hover above the terrain. Interior organization centers on a concrete bathroom core, with bedroom and living spaces flanking it and a minimalist fireplace referencing the stove.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine