square openings punctuate the facade of courtyard-centric red house in albania

"Set within a large agricultural garden in a coastal village near Lezhë, Albania, Red House by Pacarizi Studio explores how a single-family dwelling can respond to changing social structures, climatic conditions, and local building cultures. Designed by Gezim Pacarizi, the 350-square-meter home is organized around an open, partially covered courtyard with a pool at its center. The project approaches domestic architecture as a sequence of perceptual experiences shaped by light, movement, and framing, an idea articulated by the architects themselves. 'What you see through a window can be a landscape, a tree, or architecture itself,' they note."

"Its basic structure is concrete, while the exterior walls are made of local hollow bricks. Thermal insulation is produced using a mixture of straw, sand, and lime, bound with casein, a milk protein traditionally used in natural building techniques. This same mixture is applied as plaster across the surfaces, with cement replaced entirely by casein."

"Pacarizi Studio places the courtyard at the heart of the Red House. All major living spaces open toward this central void, transforming it into a living room on warmer days. The courtyard becomes a place for circulation, rest, observation, and gathering, mediating between the home and its surrounding orchard of olive, pomegranate, and orange trees. From here, a grand stair continues the spatial sequence upward to the roof, opening long views toward both the immediate garden and distant landscapes."

Red House is a 350-square-meter single-family residence set within a large agricultural garden near Lezhë, Albania. The design organizes living around an open, partially covered courtyard with a central pool, with all primary spaces opening toward that void. The concrete structure is paired with exterior walls of local hollow bricks. Thermal insulation and plaster use a straw, sand, and lime mixture bound with casein, replacing cement, while red iron oxide is added for a permanent reddish-pink tone. The sequence of windows, stairs, and openings frames layered views and extends sightlines to the orchard and distant landscape.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine