New life of an old house of the XVIII century near Yerevan
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01 Apr 2023
Architect Vardan Harutyunyan turned an old stone building of the XVIII century near Yerevan into a modern guest house
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Vardan Harutyunyan
The house is in the process of reconstruction.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
The house is located in the village of Dzorakhbyur, near Yerevan, at an altitude of 1530 m above sea level. This is an ancient place: the ancestors of the current inhabitants came here from the Persian provinces of Khoy and Slmast in 1828. Previously, the village was called Tacharapat, then Tazhrabek, and since April 4, 1964 — Dzorabyur.
The building stands on a plot of 979.0 sq.m. Originally it was a one-story stone residential building presumably of the late XVIII century with a basement. Over the years of its existence, it has been "overgrown" with numerous outbuildings that had a chaotic structure, most of which were built without any compliance with building codes. Therefore, the first thing it was decided to dismantle the later formations and leave only the historical "core".
The house before the reconstruction.
Photo
Vardan Harutyunyan
The construction of the historical building consisted of stone walls of roughly crushed stone on clay mortar, which in places reached a thickness of two meters. The basement floor had a vaulted stone ceiling of a similar design. After dismantling the outbuildings, it turned out that the main facade of the ground part of the house was built of clean-hewn volcanic tuff with beautiful arched openings.
"The beauty and energy of the ancient structure predetermined the architectural and design solution of the entire project: the house as a historical, museum exhibit," says the author of the project, architect Vardan Harutyunyan.
The light of the floor lamps highlights the beauty of the ancient vaulted ceiling.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
On the ground floor of the old building there is an office (33.9 sq.m.). The walls and ceiling are left without decoration and demonstrate the beauty of ancient masonry.
Photo
Vardan Harutyunyan
It was decided to lower the ground level of the land plot so that the basement would become the ground floor. According to the architect, the main facade of the historic building became part of the interior of the new building. It was also decided not to close the masonry walls of rough stone, leaving it in its original form. During the construction of new structures, raw concrete was used, as well as panoramic glazing, so that it was clearly possible to separate the old and the new. Thus, the old building remained in the volume of the new building — as a valuable museum exhibit under glass.
A glass staircase, without blocking the stone facade, leads to the upper floor of an old building. There is a room with a total area of 62.2 sq.m., where there is a bedroom, a kitchen area and a bathroom.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
On the veranda there is a dining area with a dining table and a hearth area, recessed below the floor level — with a massive "hood" of author's design and handmade.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
The entrance to the guest house is through an attached veranda with an area of 93.8 sq. m, glazed on three sides. The fourth wall is the former main facade of a historical building. Thanks to the sliding doors, in good weather, the veranda becomes an inseparable continuation of the garden.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
Photo
Vardan Harutyunyan
Photo
Vardan Harutyunyan
For the roof, old tiles, traditionally used in this village, were specially found and collected. As a result, the house completely merged with the surrounding buildings. "We wanted to hide its architecture from the outside and reveal it inside," says the architect.
The floor of the guest house is laid with local marble, the heterogeneous texture of which blends perfectly with the ancient masonry and "reads" like a polished version of the latter.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
Individual details of small shapes, mainly chimneys, act as bright accents of the exterior's architectural appearance.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
There is a summer kitchen on the plot, where you can cook outdoors in the warm season. It is built of traditional local materials: brick, wood, stone. The entire kitchen complex is located under a stone fence and is one with it from both a constructive and an artistic point of view.
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Vardan Harutyunyan
The author of the project: architect-designer Vardan Harutyunyan, Professor MAAM, member of the Architectural Chamber of Armenia, www.svanncharchitects.com , vharutyunyan1975@gmail.com , T. + 374 91 476337
