Architect: 3LHD
Program: Housing, Interior
Address / Location: A. Topić Mimara Street
City: Dubrovnik
Country: Croatia
Geoloçation: 42°38’37” north, 18°6’57” east
Project team: Saša Begović, Marko Dabrović, Tatjana Grozdanić Begović, Silvije Novak, Ivana Dabrović, Kristina Vidić, Romana Ilić, Ines Vlahović
Structural Engineering: Kap4 d.o.o. (Nikola Miletić)
Plumbing and Drainage: Avoka-ing d.o.o.
Electrical Engineering: IPZ elektroinženjering 22 d.o.o.
HVAC: Mario Josipović
Pool System: Makro 5 projekt (Dragan Zgaga)
Landscape design: Ines Hrdalo
General contractor: Bastion d.o.o.
About Studio
3LHD is a collaborative architectural studio, particularly interested in the integration of architecture, art, and (urban) landscape, an approach which has resulted in a series of projects and realizations in Croatia and abroad. 3LHD has an integrative approach to projects and believes that in addition to functional, architecture must respond to many other issues. Basic principles of the practice are woven into the modernity of the early 21st century.
Our design approach is each time with different realities, and with many different parameters that we give ourselves and which are given to us, it is integral, analytical, and iterative. It is based on modification of opinions of different people, that we seek to bring into production, these are various specialists, experts in various areas, and with them we try to achieve highest quality.
This is where our approach is like that of a producer and we often bring ourselves in the role of a director or a DJ who performs the best editing. In such a way we investigate the most appropriate concept and try to create new value. We always make a kind of a prototype, which is sometimes, like in automobile industry, a redesign, and sometimes a research undertaking.
House U is situated in Ploče quarter in Dubrovnik, on a steep site of irregular shape divided by a road. The house is set on top of the plot with a wonderful view of the Old City and Lokrum Island, while the lower part is intended for a lush garden. The project task was to design a house for parents and their adult children with their families.
Therefore, the plot contains two objects. One, a two-story object for parents, and the other made up of two apartments for the children and their families. A shared outdoor space is inserted between the two houses – a terrace designed for socializing and family gatherings.
The pool is in front of the parent’s house, sunken under the terrace level so it does not block the view from the living room. One of the main project features is the white facade constructed from local stone from the quarry Visočani, cut into 8x120cm “sections”.
The façade whiteness is underlined by slits of large continuous glass which provide wonderful views of the city to all living and bedrooms areas, while the bathrooms and kitchen are located in the interior of the house. The smaller house is pulled out towards the garden area to allow greater privacy, and the children’s house façade is “broken” to ensure privacy to the sleeping and living areas.
A simple combination of materials is complemented by natural wood pergola beams connecting the two houses. The natural wood is also used as a floor covering and for the garage door panels. Wooden furniture in all three units is custom-made to maximize the space and underline minimalism in colors and materials.
