A residential complex that grows out of its dramatic topography overlooking the city and mountains beyond.

This ensemble of residential spaces clustered around a sheltered garden reverses the exposed qualities of the site to create a pleasant microclimate and architecture in harmony with mountainous surroundings.

Our client wished to create a family base and had a longstanding connection with this site in an undisclosed location on the Arabian peninsula. Hill Harvey-Wood was appointed to develop a concept for a main house, guest houses, spa, pool and Majlis (a traditional Arabic meeting house), totaling 5,000m². The studio combined these as a cluster of buildings that shield each other from neighbours as well as the intense heat, providing controlled views of points of local interest and the coastline beyond.

The buildings are arranged such that a calm formal garden is formed to the inside whilst the outer perimeter, built from local limestone, is more irregular and informal giving the appearance of a walled town that grows out of the hill’s natural form in harmony with the surrounding mountains.