The brief for this artist’s residence was to restore an old townhouse in Valletta. The client wanted us to seamlessly combine living space with her art work studio – a peaceful symbiosis of the two. The challenge with this 5-storey townhouse is its verticality – turning it into one whole living space that works within all the 5 levels.

Another important facet was to embrace the roots of the house itself, seeing as the artist is inspired by the fabric that surrounds her. The idea was to place the studio in an area where the artist can focus on her creative work. From a design point of view, we banked on its simplicity. The skylight takes centre stage as it floods the house with abundant natural light.