House in Moshav Beit Zeit - "Modern Nature" | Studio Erez Hyatt

House in Moshav Beit Zeit - "Modern Nature"

We arrived at Moshav Beit Zayit following a couple of pensioners in their sixties who lived in a neglected house with a roof that had never been renovated. The house had one level that was dark because of small, narrow windows that prevented the sun from penetrating them, and did not reveal the verdant landscape at its best. All of these, created a feeling of total detachment between the dark interior and the magical exterior, as if we were talking about two totally alien worlds. We have set a goal to unite both of them, and to create an active dialogue between them.

The exterior, which overlooks the landscape of the mountainous hills of Jerusalem and its impressive forests, presents a picture that changes during daylight hours according to the sunlight. We wanted to adopt this light changes, in favor of planning the lighting in the house. So we used it as a resource, we emphasized the use of natural light as much as we could for every corner of the house. In practice, this was made possible by optimizing the windows and enlarge them as much as we could, that way, we could let the lights come in and stream energy with a magical view.

As a rule, the partition plan aims to create a flow in space by separating the functions on the one hand, and their unification into one, based on shared colors and materiality, on the other hand. For example, you can see instances of black within heavy furniture such as the sofa, furniture as light as the chairs of the island, and even the lighting fixtures above it which creates interest in playing with the strings from which the bulbs hangs. The backsplash chosen for the island's surface retains the same monochromatic scale, and its tendons resemble the same game of the lighting above it. The lighting strips that run from the kitchen to the living room also create the feeling that this is one space, with a clean, modern line.

The line chosen for the house blends in with the pastoral landscape - the use of wood in the living room canteen, in the kitchen, and in bathrooms creates a connection not only between the spaces themselves, but also between them and the trees outside. The mutual transparency between the spaces creates a luxurious residential experience, with pure pleasure in any space you choose to be at.

The result in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts was achieved by maintaining the continuity of the design language, and repeating motifs and materials that create connections between the various functions.