It is one of the oldest materials for building houses. The stone emanates solidity and also an intense rural universe. But, in addition, it is capable of adopting such a variety of physiognomies that its profuse use introduces a multiplicity of nuances and textures and, at the same time, favors harmoniously unitary environments.
This is the house that the designer Tatiana Baibabaeva and her husband Tyson Strang have renovated in Mallorca. Coming from New York, they discovered the island and have settled there seduced by the authenticity of the local architecture. “The old farmhouses on the island – Tatiana and Tyson explain to Magazine – clearly reveal their connection with the land and with the hands of their creators. The houses also tell the story of a previous life, when rooms or sheds were added out of necessity and purposeful items like hooks or shelves were the only decorations.”
Masonry stone walls grouted with earth. Pavements made up of irregular slabs or laboriously made with river pebbles. Large carved ashlars as the base of the kitchen counter. Or stacked outlining window frames and door voussoirs. Blocks and almost raw slabs in sinks and shelves… The stone reigns in the interior and exterior of this house.
“In Mallorca it is omnipresent –they observe from a recently released look–. The stone gives the houses the feeling of becoming one with the landscape and emerging from it in a humble and organic way. The tactile quality of the stone connects us to the land on a primitive level, but also brings into focus the work of the artisans who shaped it.”
From their Terra Coll studio, Tatiana and Tyson rehabilitate houses in a contemporary rustic style, using local artisans for stone and other traditional finishes, although with a contemporary aesthetic. They have started with their own home, the Alfabia farm, in the heart of the island near Sineu, surrounded by a landscape of soft pasture fields, protected forests and farms. His way of making is inspired by traditional rusticity, by hand finishes or local natural materials, used functionally and out of necessity.
“Our designs use these same principles to build contemporary homes with simple, open common spaces, free of embellishment and rich in tactile finishes.” And they emphasize the selection of the piece and its innate beauty, together with the craftsmanship that humanizes it. “These natural elements unite a house with its landscape and make it unique. For example, in one of our projects, a large rock from the Sierra de Tramontana mountains emerges from an ancient oak panel to form a giant hand-carved sink, with views of the Tramontana itself. For us, the beauty of these natural elements is the decoration”.
The new floors made with river bowls are another of the mainstays of the rehabilitation. A type of pavement from the Arab tradition, which they have adopted due to their roots in the Mediterranean culture. To make them they were based on several traditional examples found on the island. Placed manually, the patterns took shape as the work evolved.
The creative tandem formed by Tatiana Baibabaeva and Tyson Strang has its origins in ceramic manufacturing, before they ventured into home design. And today they combine both activities in the studio. His ceramic knowledge links him to another of the techniques used, tadelakt. The laborious process of drying, compression, soaping, polishing and repeated compression phases stands out from it, to obtain a final product that is breathable (fundamental in earthen walls) and waterproof, optimal in humid areas such as bathrooms. “In addition to its merits as a material – they add – it is extremely beautiful and luxurious, with the brilliant effects of stone polishing and subtle swirls that reveal the craftsman’s hand”.
The architects of this rehabilitation explain that the choice of the name Terra Coll is their personal tribute to the island, when they acquired the house in Mallorca. First they named their ceramic collection that way, then the studio from which they recreate houses, as a Catalan approach to shaping and making landscapes with earth.
