Houzz Tour: Vacation Home in Italy Stays in Touch With Its Roots

Modern details blend into the historic structure of this 19th-century Apulian farmhouse

Roberta del Vaglio January 6, 2018

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Can you really preserve the essence of an ancient Apulian masseria, or fortified farmhouse, while adapting it to a family’s vacation needs? This was the dilemma Studio Talent architects were asked to solve when they were hired to restore this farmhouse in Ostuni, Italy. They chose to go back to the building’s roots, invisibly intervening with conservative renovation measures, period-appropriate materials and modern know-how.

Studio Talent

Photos by Massimo Grassi except where noted

House at a Glance
Who lives here: An Italian family when on vacation from their current home in Paris
Location: Ostuni, Italy
Size: 3,229 square feet (300 square meters), with a half-acre (one-fifth of a hectare) of gardens; five bedrooms, four bathrooms
Architect: Studio Talent

This house is typical of a 19th-century Apulian masseria. Historically, the first floor would have been used for work, and the owners would have lived on the second.

Studio Talent

When the renovation began, the masseria wasn’t in a state of total disrepair, but it had been completely abandoned. The first step was to reinforce the structure and provide the support needed to preserve the building for generations to come.

The interior vaults had been built with the dry-stone technique typical of the region. The local white stone was left exposed, but the vaults were buttressed with reinforced concrete, as they weren’t stable enough to satisfy earthquake-proofing standards. The original fireplace was redesigned and enlarged while still maintaining the original proportions.

Studio Talent

The architect chose a simple white plaster with a milk-of-lime finish for the walls. The floors throughout are paved in cocciopesto — a material consisting of broken tiles and fragments of bricks mixed with lime mortar, which was traditional at the time the masseria was built. The light sand hue matches the stone floor outside.

The floors conceal underfloor heating, and the house gets some of its energy from solar panels installed on the roof.

The large doorways that used to lead to warehouses were turned into windows, framing the natural scenery and letting in the breeze from the sea, which is only 4.3 miles (7 kilometers) away.

Antique desk: family heirloom made by the owner’s grandfather

Studio Talent

Beside the first-floor living room is a large kitchen. Glass and steel connect the indoor and outdoor spaces.

The architect brought out the building’s natural elegance with furnishings carefully selected in consultation with the owners. Here, contemporary features such as the table and the lights combine successfully with the steel kitchen cabinets and rustic elements like the old wooden madia, a cupboard traditionally used for storing bread.

Custom kitchen: Alpes

Studio Talent

Also on the first floor, two guest rooms occupy the spaces once used as a shelter for the animals. Here, the old stone trough (opposite the bed) was preserved and spruced up to serve as a storage space and display table.

Studio Talent

The master bedroom is on the second floor. The iron bed was custom-made by local craftspeople. The doors to the en suite bathroom were painted the same dusty blue as the irreparably damaged originals.

Studio Talent

Each bathroom has a walk-in shower. These aren’t tiled, as the cocciopesto is waterproof.

Faucets: Pegaso, Ponsi; sinks: Shui, Cielo

Studio Talent

Next to the master bedroom and bathroom, in the space once occupied by the original kitchen, are a small living room and an office corner.

Studio Talent

A set of stairs leads from the office to a third-floor terrace (not pictured). The stairs look as though they were dug into the masonry. The treads were cleaned up but not restored, and signs of wear were intentionally left exposed to connect with the masseria’s history.

Studio Talent

The house is surrounded by four gardens, each with different functions and a different assortment of plants. The French doors of the guest rooms face one of the yards, providing guests with a semiprivate access to the garden.

Studio Talent

Each of the yards was brought back into use. The one that faces the guest rooms has a big fig tree and fragrant lavender plants. Citrus and pomegranate trees grow in a second garden (pictured here), while the one next to the kitchen is a vegetable garden with pots of vegetables and flowers that can be cut and used to embellish the home. The yard with the swimming pool is covered in Mediterranean scrub.

Studio Talent

The layout of the swimming pool recalls Roman water reservoirs. It is not an infinity pool: The edge rises about 17¾ inches (45 centimeters) over the ground and can serve as a seat or a sun lounger. Made of a dark lime mix, the bottom of the pool gives the water a turquoise hue that is more intense and intriguing than the light blue of a traditional swimming pool.

Before Photo

Photo by Studio Talent

Before. Looking at this “before” photo, you can see how Studio Talent pulled off a major renovation (the budget was about $840,000, or 700,000 euros) that is nonetheless true to the building’s origins and as inconspicuous as possible. Everything works together to make this house cozy and maintain the look of the productive masseria it once was.