DAR bibi | JELJELI studio

Hassene Jeljeli has renovated his grandparents’ house, an old villa from the 70s located in the officers’ neighborhood of Khaznadar, a residential area west of Tunis.
After his grandfather passed away, his mother decided to move into her childhood home to be closer and take care of the grandmother.
His family’s demand consisted of adding two bedrooms and giving the house a new look in a limited time.
The solution Hassene found was to divide the initial living room into two bedrooms and to add a living room that can accommodate the whole family.
Jeljeli designed a floating volume which is added to an old building, responding to an extensive functional program. This Mediterranean white parallelepiped displays a facade made up of modules of breeze blocks, molded in situ. This is a climatic wall which serves to break up the violent solar rays from the SOUTH, to filter them and to diffuse them warmly inside the living room. It also provides natural ventilation.
“My mission as an architect was to demonstrate that a softer and more aesthetic way is possible to renovate the houses in this neighborhood degraded by new constructions. And this despite the budget. “ HJ