DAWL by STUDJURBAN

Dawl – “light” in Maltese – is a contemporary reimagining of the traditional terraced house. The design inverts the typical local family house layout, celebrating natural light and spatial experience fluidity. Departing therefrom, Dawl lifts the kitchen, dining, and living spaces to upper levels – a naturally lit, open volume overlooking a central courtyard – and lowers the sleeping quarters within a more temperate environment.

The courtyard pierces the site’s depth and acts as a vertical spine, bringing daylight to each level. Two 2-storey-high apertures rise from the courtyard and wrap around the roof as skylights, illuminating the double-height living space into a shifting play of light. The lower bedroom level enjoys a serene ambience and generous daylight from front and back facades, and the courtyard, creating a calm and private retreat. The ground floor accommodates a garage and a professional workspace, with an entrance from the rear street – integrating a historical masonry wall as a tactile link to the building’s past. This project is a new exploration of terraced living, material honesty, and the poetic potential of light in Maltese domestic architecture.