An Italian retreat balances contrast and colour to blissfully harmonious results

Gazing across the rolling hills of Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, the keen-eyed traveller might spot a flash of terracotta in the distance. It wouldn't be entirely out of place to presume it might belong to one of the agricultural region's traditional farmhouses, defined by their clay roof tiles. Approaching the site, however, it soon becomes clear that an altogether different architectural proposition is at play here. All blocky, geometric shapes and a brutalist spirit, House on the Hills cuts a confident, albeit remarkably stealthy, figure among the area's wheat fields, vineyards and woodlands.

The project is the holiday home of architects Fabio Calvi and Paolo Brambilla, who co-founded their namesake Milan-based studio in 2006. The creative duo were after a countryside retreat, and they found what they were looking for near Piacenza, an hour and a half south of Milan, just beyond the industrial plain of the Po Valley.

Step inside this Italian retreat on a hill

‘From the very beginning, we wanted the house to be a strong, contemporary architectural gesture that clearly stands apart from the natural landscape,' the duo say. ‘At the same time, we wanted its colour palette to feel deeply connected to the place, echoing both the surrounding countryside and the traditional colours of the local architecture. This balance between contrast in form and harmony in colour was one of the project's guiding ideas.'

As a result, the house is a bold blend of regional references and 20th-century modern architecture, sprinkled with its creators' sharp sense of style and conceptual clarity. A pleasingly weighty concrete roof in an earthy colour becomes a key exterior feature that appears to float above the leafy surrounding, thanks to the subtle, organic mineral hue (somewhere between warm grey and taupe) of its similarly sturdy walls. It also translates into a powerful coffered ceiling internally, offering a 90 x 90cm grid that helps shape the layout's arrangement.

‘Beyond the colour palette rooted in the local landscape, our references included the coffered ceilings of the region's historic noble residences and the terracotta friezes of the medieval castles around Piacenza,' the architects add. ‘We are passionate students of architecture and design history. Rather than repeating the same formal language or design attitude from project to project, we try to find references that are specific and appropriate to each context. We often reinterpret elements from the past through a contemporary lens, allowing every project to develop its own identity.'

Stepping inside, a compressed entrance area opens up into a generous living space with a slightly sunken seating and entertaining area that makes you feel like you are nestled within the surrounding garden – the property's thick walls not only acting as structural load-bearers, but also accentuating the framing of verdant vistas in all directions. Spreading out beyond to the outdoors, the interior's coffered ceiling becomes a deep lattice outside, shading the terrace and swimming pool.

The sense of security provided by the house design's honest solidity is matched by its material selection. Gridded artificial stone paving flows inside and outside, connecting all spaces. Its finer, 5cm square grid ‘evokes the visionary landscapes imagined by Superstudio during the Radical Architecture movement of the late 1960s', the architects explain, referencing the era's Italian movement that challenged modern architecture and consumer capitalism through bold and imaginative photocollages and design visuals often featuring grids.

Furnishings are a balanced mix of 20th-century vintage finds and pieces designed by the architects for companies such as Zanotta, Frigerio and Pianca. And bespoke elements abound too, defined by oversized solid wooden knobs, which can be found on the kitchen cupboards and other storage elements. As the pair put it: ‘These tactile details introduce an almost archetypal domestic quality, recalling traditional farm furniture and affirming the building's primary vocation: a country house intended to be shared around long meals, seasonal gatherings and everyday family life.'

As to whether it was challenging to design a home for themselves, Calvi and Brambilla's 20 years' experience makes them feel confident in their choices: ‘We approached the project in exactly the same way, treating ourselves as the clients. The design evolved through a very careful and continuous dialogue between us, and looking back, we would make almost exactly the same decisions again. Apart from a few minor details, we wouldn't change anything.'

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