Adaptive Reuse of an Old Stable

[Project by ArqEstructura]

This adaptive reuse project involves converting an old stable in a rural village in southern France into a small apartment. The original construction is a tall space between party walls terminating with a barrel-vaulted ceiling that supports a house above and contains a mezzanine that was added later. Due to the steeply sloped terrain, which leaves the space semi-interred, the front facade –consisting of a doorway and a window above– is the only source of air and natural light. The main challenge of the project, then, was how to maximize daylight for the ground floor kitchen, dining, and living room. To this end, we propose a new glass facade receded one meter behind the stone facade, creating a double-height entrance porch that permits light entering the window above to also reach the ground floor below.