House in Between

The project is located in the southern wetlands of Venice, at a site known as Casone Prime Poste, which in Italian means “the big house.” Historically, this place served as a primary station providing services to fishermen navigating the lagoon. Today, only the ruins remain. The aim of this exercise was to design a small house of no more than 30 sqm within these remains, reviving the lost identity of the site while introducing a quiet program of bird-watching within the lagoon landscape.

House in Where?

The primary goal of the design was designing a house within the center of the ruins, preserving a dialogue with the site’s past. While the building is contemporary, it reinterprets the lost identity of the place, allowing the new architecture and the remaining structure to coexist and interweave.

The house is suspended between two eras, where the old walls shape the internal boundaries of the new house and define the spaces and functions of every part.

Large transparent surfaces reinforce this condition of in-between. Materials reinforce the experience of living between modernity and history. The inhabitants experience a suspended life between lagoon and ruin—observing the movement of birds above the water while inhabiting the historic walls of Casone Prime Poste.

The site faces a risk of flooding, with water rising up to 1 meter during the rainy season, while accessibility is limited and basic utilities such as gas, electricity, and drinking water are difficult to reach. To respond to these challenges, the house is elevated above the flood level and designed with sustainability at its core. Rainwater is collected from the roof to provide water, while abundant sunlight is harnessed to heat the house. The local climate, with frequent rain and many sunny days, directly shaped these strategies, allowing the design to adapt to the unique conditions of the Venice wetlands.