Village yard in Velmej, Debarca

The village yard of the family Iloski is located at the edge of the village Velmej, towards the valley. They did not want an enclosed building, a house, but rather a frame for their presence in the village. Iloski's parents live in the Village. His idea is to share his occasional presence in the village with his guests and fellow villagers. Therefore, this yard is intended as a type of common space of the village within a private domain. What does this yard consist of? One circular gap, a circle of water in the middle of the yard, an archetypical figure that introduces the 'axis mundi', right here, at this place, in this yard. A colonnade which frames the yard, gives a spatial definition and separates the site from its surroundings, but at the same time frames the landscape and intensifies it. A street which extends the village street, enters into one side of the yard and exits to the valley at the other side. Therefore, as a type of 'inverted archaeology", if a yard turns into an architectural type, peristyle, then the 'hidden palace' will emerge from surrounding houses and the village.

Prefabricated reinforced concrete elements, pillars from a factory which had been dominant at the socialistic time, were used as a 'readymade' procedure. Contrary to ready elements, the stone walls and floors are from the local travertine of Velmej, put in place by craftsmen from Pustec. During the work on this project we recognize: A yard with a porch instead of a house: if we use a location only in certain days or certain seasons, we do not need an enclosed house for continuous living, but rather a spatial frame for our activities.