MA Villa is conceived as a contemporary reinterpretation of the traditional Riyadh courtyard house, combining strong geometric volumes with deep shaded terraces to ensure privacy and climatic comfort. The composition of interlocking white frames and warm timber screens generates a sense of floating masses, while the ground level remains visually permeable to connect the house with the street and garden. The villa is designed as an urban oasis, where architecture, vegetation and light orchestrate a calm domestic landscape.
The villa is located on a corner plot in a low-rise residential district of Riyadh, characterized by wide streets, generous setbacks and intense solar exposure. The design responds by presenting a controlled, almost introverted street frontage, while opening gradually towards internal patios and elevated gardens. The main vehicular access is emphasized by a deep, shaded porte-cochère, separating guest arrival from the more discreet family entrance and service access along the side.
The building is organized as stacked, offset volumes that create overhangs and double-height voids. A solid base anchors the project, above which the first-floor white frame projects outward, generating covered outdoor living areas. The upper volume, wrapped in vertical timber louvers, appears to float, producing a dynamic yet balanced composition. These shifts in massing are carefully calibrated to control views, produce shade, and articulate a hierarchy between public, semi-private and private zones of the villa.
The façade strategy contrasts three main materials: crisp white rendered frames, dark stone or composite panels at the base, and warm timber cladding and louvers at the upper levels. The vertical wooden fins reinterpret the regional mashrabiya, providing privacy and solar control while maintaining filtered outward views. Horizontal pergolas extend this language, casting patterned shadows over terraces and reinforcing the villa’s identity throughout the day. Glazing is recessed behind shading layers to reduce direct solar gain and glare.
Internally, living spaces are arranged around visual axes toward planted terraces and linear gardens. Large sliding glass panels allow the majlis and family living rooms to open fully to outdoor decks, transforming them into shaded semi-open salons during the cooler months. The offset slabs create double-height interfaces filled with greenery, so that upper-floor corridors and bedrooms overlook pockets of landscape rather than directly onto the street, enhancing privacy and spatial richness.
Landscape is woven into every level of the project: ground-floor planters soften the boundary wall, mid-level terraces accommodate container gardens and small trees, and the roofline is crowned with continuous planting beds. The front setback becomes a linear garden buffering the villa from the street, while the rear accommodates more intimate family outdoor areas. Climatically resilient species are selected for low water consumption, complemented by integrated planters along the carport and entrance, reinforcing the sense of arrival.
The architectural language directly supports environmental performance in Riyadh’s hot desert climate. Deep overhangs, recessed glazing and the timber louver system substantially reduce solar heat gain, decreasing cooling loads. The orientation prioritizes shaded facades and harnesses prevailing breezes through cross-ventilation where possible. High-performance glazing, insulated walls and light-colored external frames mitigate thermal absorption. Landscape irrigation is optimized through drip systems and drought-tolerant planting, while the extensive shading and greenery improve microclimate comfort for both indoor spaces and outdoor terraces.
MA Villa is conceived as a contemporary reinterpretation of the traditional Riyadh courtyard house, combining strong geometric volumes with deep shaded terraces to ensure privacy and climatic comfort. The composition of interlocking white frames and warm timber screens generates a sense of floating masses, while the ground level remains visually permeable to connect the house with the street and garden. The villa is designed as an urban oasis, where architecture, vegetation and light orchestrate a calm domestic landscape.
The villa is located on a corner plot in a low-rise residential district of Riyadh, characterized by wide streets, generous setbacks and intense solar exposure. The design responds by presenting a controlled, almost introverted street frontage, while opening gradually towards internal patios and elevated gardens. The main vehicular access is emphasized by a deep, shaded porte-cochère, separating guest arrival from the more discreet family entrance and service access along the side.
The building is organized as stacked, offset volumes that create overhangs and double-height voids. A solid base anchors the project, above which the first-floor white frame projects outward, generating covered outdoor living areas. The upper volume, wrapped in vertical timber louvers, appears to float, producing a dynamic yet balanced composition. These shifts in massing are carefully calibrated to control views, produce shade, and articulate a hierarchy between public, semi-private and private zones of the villa.
The façade strategy contrasts three main materials: crisp white rendered frames, dark stone or composite panels at the base, and warm timber cladding and louvers at the upper levels. The vertical wooden fins reinterpret the regional mashrabiya, providing privacy and solar control while maintaining filtered outward views. Horizontal pergolas extend this language, casting patterned shadows over terraces and reinforcing the villa’s identity throughout the day. Glazing is recessed behind shading layers to reduce direct solar gain and glare.
Internally, living spaces are arranged around visual axes toward planted terraces and linear gardens. Large sliding glass panels allow the majlis and family living rooms to open fully to outdoor decks, transforming them into shaded semi-open salons during the cooler months. The offset slabs create double-height interfaces filled with greenery, so that upper-floor corridors and bedrooms overlook pockets of landscape rather than directly onto the street, enhancing privacy and spatial richness.
Landscape is woven into every level of the project: ground-floor planters soften the boundary wall, mid-level terraces accommodate container gardens and small trees, and the roofline is crowned with continuous planting beds. The front setback becomes a linear garden buffering the villa from the street, while the rear accommodates more intimate family outdoor areas. Climatically resilient species are selected for low water consumption, complemented by integrated planters along the carport and entrance, reinforcing the sense of arrival.
The architectural language directly supports environmental performance in Riyadh’s hot desert climate. Deep overhangs, recessed glazing and the timber louver system substantially reduce solar heat gain, decreasing cooling loads. The orientation prioritizes shaded facades and harnesses prevailing breezes through cross-ventilation where possible. High-performance glazing, insulated walls and light-colored external frames mitigate thermal absorption. Landscape irrigation is optimized through drip systems and drought-tolerant planting, while the extensive shading and greenery improve microclimate comfort for both indoor spaces and outdoor terraces.
Our offices are located in Barcelona, Cancún, Chicago and Santo Domingo, but thanks to technology we can do projects on all over the world.
Barcelona
Bac de Roda 136
08020, Barcelona
Spain
Madrid
Av. de Buendía 11
19005 Guadalajara (Madrid)
Spain
Chicago
373 Hazel Ave, Apt A1
60022, Glencoe, Illinois
United States