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Promotion: natural stone by Italian company Antolini has been used throughout the interior of this apartment in Malta designed by architects Sabrina Soldà and Keith Pillow. More
Valentino Architects and curator Ann Dingli have presented a proposal to retrofit a historic fortification at the Venice Architecture Biennale to suggest alternative methods of conservation in the face of Malta’s rapid development.
Curated by Dingli, the small-scale exhibition was part of the Time Space Existence showcase and featured an abstracted plan to retrofit the 17th-century watchtower on the north-eastern shore of Malta.
The Għallis exhibition was presented at the Venice Architecture Biennale. Photo by Luca Zarb”The Għallis watchtower in isolation is not remarkably significant – it’s been vacant for years,” Dingli told Dezeen. “But it belongs to a network of micro-fortifications that were built along the edge of the islands in the 17th century and tell a part of the islands’ wider military story.”
“Today the tower is a marker along the coast and not much more,” she continued. “The point of the exhibition is to re-charge its significance by introducing new usability and graduating it from just a visual landmark to a habitable space.”
It focused on an abstracted plan to retrofit the 17th-century watchtowerWith its proposal, the team suggests changing the use of the building to create a multi-use structure that can be utilised in numerous ways.
“The design reverses the exclusive nature of the tower – conceived as a fortress designed to keep people out – to an inclusive building that invites people in,” explained Valentino Architects.
“Its programme is flexible, adapting to three permutations that allow for varying degrees of private use and public access.”
The team proposed renovating the towerThe tower was showcased at the biennale to draw attention to a wider issue facing Malta – the commercialisation of its historic buildings.
The team aimed to demonstrate that historic buildings could be converted into useable structures rather than being restored as empty monuments.
The Għallis tower was the focus of the exhibition. Photo by Alex Attard”Heritage architecture in Malta has a strong focus on preservation of building fabric and less so on functional innovation,” said Dingli.
“This means heritage buildings very often serve one programme – usually as museums of themselves or as institutional buildings – and as a result become inaccessible or redundant to everyday use,” she continued.
“This design moves away from heritage as a product and towards heritage as useful space.”
Álvaro Siza creates wooden figures for Holy See pavilion at Venice Architecture Biennale
The team hopes that the exhibition will draw attention to the rapid development of Malta, which it says is happening at the expense of the country’s existing buildings.
“The islands are on a seemingly unstoppable trajectory of hyper-development,” explained Dingli. “Malta is the most densely populated country in the EU, and one of the most densely populated countries in the world.”
“Its built environment hasn’t met this intensity with the right blend of retrofit and newbuild development – the former exists in extreme scarcity, despite a huge stock of existing building fabric crying out to be re-used in smarter ways,” she continued.
The team proposed turning into a multi-use spaceAlthough the exhibition focuses on a historic fortification, the team believes that prioritising reuse over rebuilding should be implemented across the country.
“The argument for conservation needs to be extended to any form of building stock, not just heritage buildings,” explained Valentino Architects.
“Demolishing existing buildings to make way for new ones is almost never sustainable,” they continued. “When there is no alternative but to remove a building, we need to advocate for dismantling as opposed to demolishing.”
“Materials such as Malta’s local yellow limestone – which has traditionally carved out the architectural identity of our island – is a finite resource that needs to be both protected and used,” they added.
Alongside the Għallis exhibition, the Time Space Existence show presented work by architects, designers and artists from 52 different countries in venues across the city. These included a tea house made from food waste and a concrete emergency housing prototype developed by the Norman Foster Foundation and Holcim.
The photography is by Federico Vespignani.
Time Space Existence takes place from 20 May to 26 November 2023 at various locations across Venice, Italy. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
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Valentino Architects has converted the studio and home of late post-war painter Frank Portelli in Malta into a contemporary residence for his granddaughter.
The home, named La Serenissima, is located in the village of Attard in the centre of the Mediterranean island.
La Serenissima now features an open-air sun terracePortelli, who is known for his cubist artworks and murals, originally designed the house in 1995 and incorporated numerous windows and skylights throughout the building so that it could serve as the ideal place to paint and live.
Local practice Valentino Architects was tasked with transforming the existing structure into a home for the artist’s granddaughter, starting with adding a raised sun deck to the southernmost point of the house.
Adjacent to the terrace is a modern kitchen with black cabinetryThis was achieved by removing the glazing from a number of the angled skylights and adding timber decking, creating a kind of open-air terrace that is separated from the interior using sliding glass doors.
A short flight of wooden steps doubles up as seats and leads down into the kitchen, which features jet-black cabinetry and a large open-fronted island for storing tableware.
The study is finished with petroleum green wallsJust across from the kitchen is a dining area. Here, Valentino Architects preserved one of Portelli’s original plywood mood boards, with some of his hand-written annotations and markings still intact.
On the east-west axis of the home lies a small indoor courtyard and a blue-painted study surrounded by pointed archways.
Geometric tiles nod to Portelli’s cubist paintingsMost of the mid-century furnishings and light fixtures featured in this space were Portelli’s own, before being carefully restored by Valentino Architects.
The floor was also inlaid with geometric tiles in reference to the cubic shapes that frequently appear throughout the artist’s paintings.
The bedroom and bathroom are tucked behind sliding doorsOn the northern end of the home is a huge gridded window that extends outwards from the building and then tapers to a point. To one side of the window lies a bedroom and to the other a white-tiled bathroom.
Both spaces are closed off by sliding doors, punctuated with cut-out handles that nod to La Serenissima’s diamond-shaped window.
At the northern end of the home is a huge pointed windowValentino Architects was established in 2015 and is based in Malta’s capital Valletta.
Other striking homes on the tiny Mediterranean island include Casa B with its glass-bottomed rooftop pool and The Coach House by AP Valletta, which features a “woven” stone facade.
The photography is by Ramon Portelli.
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Design practice Mizzi Studio paired pink terrazzo with emerald-green velvet and timber to form the bold interior of restaurant Barbajean in Malta.Serving a menu of modern Meditteranean dishes, Barbajean occupies a prominent corner property in the village of Dingli.
The quiet village sits at the highest point of Malta, and has uninterrupted views out across the ocean towards the uninhabited isle of Filfla.
Barbajean has a pink and green facade
Mizzi Studio’s founder, Jonathan Mizzi – who is from Malta – designed the restaurant so that it pays tribute to Dingli and its scenic landscape, but also “injects [the village] with new life”.
“Working within the village’s particular urban fabric was a key inspiration for us,” said Mizzi.”We wanted to create a restaurant that would stand at the core of a quintessential Maltese village experience.”
Three arches punctuate the restaurant’s terrazzo-lined bar
The baby-pink facade of Barbajean has been made to include architraves and coloured doors– two elements that Mizzi says can be seen on the exterior of a typical Maltese home.
Emerald-green timber doors have been built into the facade’s trio square openings. Each opening is surrounded by a chunky pink-terrazzo architrave, created by Maltese surface manufacturer Halmann Vella.
Malta-themed artwork has been mounted on Barbajean’s walls
The pink and green colour scheme continues inside the restaurant. Rose-coloured terrazzo lines the wall behind the drinks bar, which has been punctuated with three arched niches.
Liquor bottles and glassware are displayed inside the niches, illuminated by neon-pink strip lights that have been installed overhead.
Rosy terrazzo has also been used to craft the surfacetop of the bar counter, the base of which is made from fluted timber that’s been stained green. Just in front is a row of pink high chairs with tubular brass frames.
Dining chairs are accompanied by pink-terrazzo tables
A lengthy seating banquette upholstered in emerald velvet winds its way around the opposite side of the room, accompanied by pink terrazzo tables inlaid with flecks of Guatemala Verde marble.
Directly above are a series of prints by Maltese illustrator Ed Dingli, which depict quotidian scenes of life in the village.
Mizzi Studio completes stingray cafe alongside the Serpentine
In between the prints are custom-made light fixtures designed by Mizzi Studio, which feature curling brass stems and spherical bulbs.
Surfaces in this area of the restaurant are painted a pale mint shade, but another dining nook that lies towards the rear of the plan has been given a cosier feel with dark-green walls and wooden floorboards.
Towards the back of the restaurant is another dining nook
Mizzi Studio was established in 2011 and has offices in both London and Valletta, the capital of Malta. Barbajean isn’t the only hospitality space that the studio has designed – last year it completed works on The Serpentine Coffee House in London’s Hyde Park.
The venue boasts glass walls and a gold, undulating roof that’s meant to resemble the shape of a stingray.
Photography is by Brian Grech.
Project credits:
Stonework: Halman VellaBrass fabrication: Anvil and ForgeJoinery and upholstery: Construct FurnitureCustom print artwork: Ed DingliBranding: Steves and Co
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