Batrun Annex 1 was initiated by Michel Abboud, founder and principal of SOMA Architects. Our concept was clear: we wanted to take the concept of the New York Loft and import it to the coast of Lebanon in this unique seaside property. Using a virtual knife to carve out a plane from the earth and raise it as if were annullable skin, we then inserted all the living functions directly underneath in the form of an open-floor plan with no partitions. Skylights are then worked into the project by strategically puncturing the hard concrete shell to allow for extra natural lighting. The result is a perfectly protected, but totally open interior space. The only wall in this house is its 'convertible' facade, a double skin of folding glass and wooden mechanical louvers that can be activated with the push of a button to literally unwrap the whole house to the magnificent vistas of the sea, beach and horizon.
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