This house has been built on a terraced orange grove that is dotted with some hundred-year-old palm trees. The house lies on a foundation of yellow stones from Kabylie, in continuity with the existing terraces. The white concrete building thus gives the impression of being a one-story house, thus reducing its impact on the land. The house has been designed to preserve the existing vegetation as much as possible. Therefore, the main entrance, which is located along a stone wall that enters into a two-story space, is reached by climbing a staircase that is directly in line with a palm tree, which can be viewed in its entirety through a glass wall. The main living space is on the second floor, and its southern-facing terrace merges with the top branches of the orange trees of the lower terrace. The reception area, an indoor and outdoor dining room, as well as the owners’ apartment, are directly next to this large terrace. The outdoor dining room, a patio opening onto the orange trees, creates a transition between the communal spaces and the homeowners’ private space. All of the windows of the house have been thought out as paintings opening onto the surrounding nature, sometimes framing palm trees, other times orange trees or yuccas. In Algeria, for security reasons, metal gratings must be added to any windows or doors. These have been integrated into the architecture from the start of the project. They reinterpret the wooden or metal grates of traditional Algerian houses, with five-centimeter metal plates creating two-centimeter squares. Specific attention has been given to the home’s environmental impact. Rainwater is collected on the roof towards the north and joins the yard’s irrigation system, while the terrace water is redirected to the southern side and flows through gargoyles in old recuperated tiles from Kabylie. The terrace water flow is thus used to irrigate the bougainvillea planted along the base of the house. The wall built on the foundation is very thick and insulates the rooms on the ground floor from the heat in summer, while the concrete top floor of the house is transversely ventilated.
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