Sara Alfieri and Leslie Drouet took the ArchiCOTE 2014 competition's Villa Extension Prize for La Farigoulette, an old Provençal house given a modern twist.
"Some architects have a signature you recognise at first glance. Not me!" laughs Sara Alfieri.
The Italian-born architect doesn't believe in marking all her realisations with recurring traits but in tackling each project without pre-conceived ideas. "The starting point for me is always meeting with the clients; it's the discussions and exchanges that lead me down a particular path, technically, aesthetically and if possible poetically." Arriving on the Côte d’Azur, Alfieri perfected her French and learnt how the profession functions in France by working for local architecture practices. With Palm Architects she took on a major challenge: renovating the Cap Estel hotel in Eze, which has hosted such prestigious guests such as Georges Pompidou, The Beatles and Gina Lollobrigida. The hotel's makeover was unveiled in 2004, after months of work.
Interpreting needs
"All the communal space was decorated in a slightly British neoclassical style but each suite was given a different and original identity, e.g. a big undivided loft, a double-height room with a mezzanine. Avoiding standardisation was one of the main challenges," Alfieri explains. With that experience under her belt, she decided to open her own practice. Sharing offices with architect Antonino Cascio, in 2008 the two worked together on Villa Limoncello, a luxurious five-floor residence in Cannes's upmarket La Californie district. This features a liberal use of 90° angles plus two symmetrical wings seemingly plunging towards the Lérins Islands on one side and the Cap d’Antibes on the other. The swimming pool extends from the garden into the house, bridged by a delicate glass stairway with fine stainless-steel rods. The entire building is light, minimalist and distinctly contemporary.
Complementary colours
La Farigoulette, for which Alfieri won the ArchiCOTE prize, was originally a traditionally grounded Provençal mas. "The owners loved the coolness of its thick walls and its old terracotta floors but deplored the dampness
and lack of openings." So working with her colleague Leslie Drouet, Alfieri decided to turn the building's superb vaulted cellar into the living room and open the kitchen up to the exterior via big glazed doors. To this old part they then added a modern extension for which they chose contrasting materials, so the traditional old
house with its pink rendering and green shutters is complemented by a light two-floor construction of wood and glass. Alfieri is keen to contribute on a larger scale to the "living together" philosophy so in partnership with other practices she also submits tenders for public contracts. She likes to quote Renzo Piano: "Architecture is the art of providing shelter for human activities." An art particularly evident in cities.
By Tanja Stojanov
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