AP Valletta has completed a notable project to enhance the architectural integrity and privacy of an 18th century palazzino, situated close to Villa Arrigo and St Paul's Chapel in San Pawl tat-Tarġa.

The project aimed to to address modern challenges facing the property, particularly those arising from the new, taller apartment blocks that have sprung up around it, the architectural firm wrote on its social media.

The adjacent buildings have compromised the privacy of the traditionally low-rise home, particularly in its terrace and garden, it added.

The brief therefore, AP Valletta explained, was developed to include the design of a screen wall on the façade of the lower building to provide privacy to the terrace behind it and the garden below where a pool is located.

The residence, while positioned just outside the designated Urban Conservation Area (UCA), called for a design solution that not only respected the existing architecture but also ensured continuity with its surroundings.

AP Valletta responded with an expertly-crafted fixed stone privacy screen on the façade of the lower building.

The main objective was to preserve the private ambiance of the terrace and garden without compromising the visual harmony of the property.

This contemporary screen, conceptualised as an extension of the current façade, features the distinctive use of Maltese soft stone, or ‘franka’.

The firm wrote that the use of this stone “enabled the use of traditional construction methods and techniques to sculpt the undulating folds of the screen, thus engaging with the past and future.”

This approach allows the stone to develop its own natural patina over time, ensuring that the addition will evolve gracefully alongside the original structure, it explained.

The project exemplifies how tradition and innovation can coalesce to meet today’s practical needs without losing sight of artistic and cultural value.