The story of this house began when Yağız, the founder of Gemalf, with whom we collaborated on the project, wanted to build a house for his mother, Ms. Çiğdem.

The land was characterized by large granite rocks and tall pine trees. Despite being a small-scale house, the structure was arranged in a fragmented manner around a courtyard to avoid interfering with any trees, rocks, or the natural texture of the land. This approach allowed for the creation of small garden islands where existing trees and rocks were located. The rooms were connected around the courtyard by covered semi-open transition spaces. The integration of closed, semi-open, and open spaces with small garden islands and the central courtyard enabled us to create various spatial variations, enhancing the potential for diverse spatial experiences.

Even though the structures were situated in entirely different climatic conditions and geographies, we were greatly inspired by the residential projects of Studio Mumbai in terms of locality, materials, and craftsmanship during the design process. We aimed to adapt the building to the topography, natural elements around it, and its orientation to the sun, making it fully belong to its location through structural material and technical choices.

In the building, traditional materials from the region were used, such as brick bases combined with lightweight frame construction and traditional lime plastered walls. The roofs and eaves were covered with a thin bronze standing seam metal cladding.

During the planning phase of the building, we did not start by considering standard room names, definitions, layouts, and furnishings. Instead, we began by thinking about the actions of the user within the spaces. As daily life activities became clear, we reached spaces that needed to be defined outside conventional room names. Instead of a living room, kitchen, and dining room, we defined a hearth room facing south, a dining corridor, and a winter garden. Instead of a guest room, we defined a reading and sleeping area on a mezzanine. Instead of a living room, we designed a conversation pit and a reading nook. We then connected these user-driven spaces with transition areas, considering their relationships and the topography, creating a courtyard house with continuous permeability between indoor and outdoor spaces.