A7-Single – Level Villa | Raz Melamed. Architect

Like a book cover  that hints at the story within, the façade of the house designed by Raz Melamed offers a quiet preview of the  architectural narrative inside.

The residence is composed of three white prisms aligned parallel to the street, set opposite a fourth volume—a cube of exposed concrete. Together, they form an L-shaped composition that frames the  a courtyard and draws it into view from nearly every point in the home.

This is the story of a couple and their three adult children who purchased a plot of land in central Israel with the intention of building a country-style villa. An encounter with Melamed’s work reshaped their vision, and they  entrusted him with designing a contemporary home defined by clarity, restraint, and a precise material palette.

From the outset, the clients’ wishes were clear:a courtyard made for entertaining, with a pool and outdoor kitchen; a tall central living space opening toward the water, a private suite for each child; a ground-floor master suite connected to the garden; and a separate, intimate family lounge.

Through precise sketches and a focused architectural vision, these requests were translated  into a home tailored to its inhabitants.

The street façade is cast in exposed concrete, its formwork imprint giving the surface a taxtile  texture. Above,, dark slats sit like a crown.Centered within the concrete plane is the entrance door for guests, while the family enters discreetly from the parking area through a concealed door integrated into the kitchen.

Inside, the guest restroom is positioned immediately near the entry, followed  by a white library element that interrupts the direct line of sight toward the kitchen. The kitchen itself is organized around a tall dark façade that seamlessly incorporates the air-conditioning system. Parallel to it sits a stainless-steel island topped in black, with integrated sink, faucet, and cooktop—an intentionally restrained composition.

Adjacent to the kitchen is the dining area, anchored by a table that feels made for the space: a dark top on legs that echo the slated motif repeated throughout the house. Muted leather chairs gather around it, while a sculptural light fixture descends above.  At the corner, a column clad in concrete—framed by glass—becomes a three-dimensional object, echoed again in the dropped ceiling above the kitchen, reinforcing a sense of continuity.

 The living room, oriented toward the garden, balances leather and glass with a colorful rug that warms the palette. . Sofas and armchairs are arranged around a low table to create an inviting setting, while recessed linear lighting emphasizes the height of the space.

Detached from the living room is the family lounge, centered around a cognac-colored leather sofa. Above it hangs a tonal paper-cut artwork in by artist Carmel Alon. A round table on a conical base,paired with airy chairs, serves as an everyday dining spot—casual, intimate, and slightly removed. 

From here, a flush white door leads to the master suite, furnished with softness and restraint and enjoying an uninterrupted view of the garden. The openness is amplified by the absence of columns—an approach employed throughout the house—reflecting Melamed’s preference for generous openings for light and air, resolved through thoughtful structural solutions set early in the planning.  at the planning stage.

Privacy between the entrance and  the sleeping area is achieved through a white walk-in closet, organized aroundfeaturing a central accessories display display that nods to the languagereminiscent of a luxury boutique. Beyond it lies the bathroom, where resin flooring—used throughout the house—extends seamlessly onto the walls. Continuous plaster finishes, free of joints, without joints create a dialogue between modern and traditional sensibilities. A white freestanding white bathtub, accompanied by a minimalist ladder for towels, ffaces a floating wooden vanity that introduces warmth, complemented by darkblack sanitary fittings. Tall windows are carefully placedpositioned to maintain ensure privacy from the lowerbasement level.

Outside,The exterior design is enveloped by dense perimeter landscaping that provides seclusion,privacy while balancing the clients’ request for generous paving with a sense of landscape. nature with the extensive paving requested by the clients. A zero-edge swimming pool with an overflow channel runs along the length of the plot. Overhead slats form a pergola that shades the outdoor entertaining area while allowing sunlight to reach the waterpool. Outdoor furniture is playful and colorful, echoing the cognac tones found inside the home.

A perimeter concrete volume atop the roof extends downward into the form of columns that reach the pool floor, all in the same material. Between them, white volumes are framed by darkblack perimeter profiles. This interplay of heights — between concrete columns and slats — createsgenerates a dynamic spatial rhythm that, registersinfluencing both inside and outthe interior and exterior environments.

At the clients’ request, the children’s suites are located on the basement level, accessed via floating black steel stairs. Each suite features white cabinetry and light-toned furnishings that convey calm and continuity, with resin flooring extending from the ground floor. Each suite continues the calm language of the home with light-toned furnishings and white cabinetry, while the resin flooring extends down from the ground floor. opens to its own outdoor seating area, separated by vegetation. Each opens to its own outdoor seating area, separated by vegetation. Here, orange and earthy furnishings sit against a black basalt wall, creating a sense of visual infinity.

The outdoor furniture combines orange and earthy tones, set against a black basalt wall that creates a sense of visual infinity.

In this house, Melamedthe architect has craftsed a refined fusion of contemporary architecturemodern architecture and a layered interplay of material contrasts, scales, and depths—resulting in a home that feelsis both architecturally precisecompelling and warmly lived-ininviting.

Photography: Amit Geron