PHASE3 were asked to provide a branded architectural identity for a new luxury development in the Mediterranean hills above Dubrovnik for The Life Above. We developed a simple strategy to take advantage of the views and create a sinuous flow between building and landscape.

The programme asked us to design and link a series of spaces, from a spa and boutique hotel, to retail and luxury villas. We approached the design with a goal to ground the spaces within the local context. Through research, we identified local materials and crafted construction techniques to harness the natural environment and extend into the landscape.

A series of clustered material definitions, which housed specific programmes, were deployed into the landscape. Each material definition allowed us to remove enclosures and principally define circulation through material, view and programmatic insertions into the landscape.

The project harnesses the natural beauty of the area and connects the visual language from the entrance gate over the cultural centre and restaurants to the hotels and villas, establishing a clear identity and set of experiences linked throughout the development.