Amarin Apartment Village / 3LHD

Architects: 3LHD
Year: 2013
Photographs: Courtesy of 3LHD
Structural Engineering: Radionica statike, Branko Galić
Site Supervision: Institut IGH d.d.
Landscape Design: Studio Kappo, Katja Sošić
General Contractor: Zagrebgradnja d.o.o
Proyect Team: Saša Begović, Marko Dabrović, Tatjana Grozdanić Begović, Silvije Novak, Hrvoje Bilandžić, Koraljka Brebrić Kleončić, Ivan Ćurković, Tina Galešić, Tin Kavurić, Nives Krsnik Rister, Leon Lazaneo, Kristina Marković, Eugen Popović, Krunoslav Szorsen, Dijana Vandekar
Signage and Environmental Graphics Design, Visual Identity: Lana Cavar, Luka Predragović
Typeface Design: Narcisa Vukojević
Illustrations for Interiors and Environmental Graphics: Oko
Plumbing and Drainage, Hvac: Termotehnika d.o.o., Vladimir Paun
Electrical Engineering, Fire Safety: NOVATEC d.o.o, Dušan Repac
Drainage Project: Feručo Jugovac, A.G.I. d.o.o
Fire Protection / Strategy / Safety Project: Maksim Carević, Inspekting d.o.o.
Building Physics, Details: AKFZ studio d.o.o, Mateo Biluš
Typeface Design: Narcisa Vukojević
Illustrations for Interiors and Environmental Graphics: Oko
City: Rovinj
Country: Croatia

Amarin Apartment Village, a residential complex by 3LHD in Rovinj, replaces old apartments with 190 new units, integrating pedestrian paths and natural slopes. The design emphasizes high-quality outdoor spaces and comfortable interiors. New corridors form green islands with modular units in varying facade colors. Spatial correlations create micro sceneries and intimate spaces, focusing on privacy through volume designs and materials. The complex includes duplex and single-floor units, service rooms, and is entirely pedestrian, with parking on the edge. Local designers developed the visual identity, featuring Istrian-inspired illustrations and furnishings.

Amarin Apartment Village is located north of Rovinj, surrounded by lush vegetation. Adjacent to the existing 272 apartments, 190 new units were built, replacing the old substandard ones. The placement of the new buildings is influenced by existing pedestrian paths and the gentle slope of the plot from north to south. The Village was designed to provide high-quality intimate outdoor spaces for each apartment, along with comfortable interiors.

New communication corridors formed irregular sections on the plot, grouping apartment units on these green islands. The basic modular element, the accommodation unit, is multiplied and arranged into blocks through spatial variations and rotations. The blocks are distinguished by different facade color schemes. Spatial correlation between apartment units is achieved through voids and atria, creating micro sceneries and intimate living spaces. Outdoor spaces at the Village are graded from intimate atria, to semi-public neighborhood areas, and public paths through the village.

The design theme aimed to create a distinctive architectural language that connects objects and defines their block affiliation. This led to the development of a “unit privacy” concept through micro sceneries of varying sizes. Tools for this concept included volume designs such as loggias, atria, gardens, and terraces, along with material choices like rough plaster, ceramics, wood, pergolas, and vegetation. These elements were used to create a unique color scheme in the building architecture.

The apartment units include two types: two-floor units with a living area, dining area, kitchen, toilet, terrace, and garden on the ground floor, and two bedrooms and a bathroom on the first floor; and single-floor units with a living area, dining area, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, and terrace. Each plot contains service rooms, maid’s rooms for laundry disposal, toilets, and installation facilities.

Amarin is entirely pedestrian, with no cars allowed on the site, and car parking is provided on the edge. The main walking paths run between blocks, leading to the entrance of each apartment. Trails and paths follow the natural slope of the terrain. The rooftops follow the slope and are topped with coarse crushed stone. Facades are finished in white plaster and ceramics, varying in color for each block. Outdoor terraces are made of wood and feature wooden pergolas, with privacy ensured by green walls of plants supported by the terrace structure.

The visual identity, signage, and environmental graphics for the Apartments were developed by Lana Cavar and Luka Predragović. Croatian illustrator OKO created illustrations for the apartment interiors and signage, inspired by traditional Istrian costumes and animals such as the Istrian ox “boškarin” (Ciprijan), Istrian sheep (Barbara), Istrian donkey (Pepi), redheaded grebe (Vanda), and bee (Keko). The apartments are furnished with “Revolve” sofa beds by Croatian manufacturer Kvadra, designed by Numen/ForUse + Bratović & Borovnjak, and ILI_ILI lamps designed by Grupa. The lighting concept for Amarin follows the overall color scheme, using lampshade combinations to identify individual blocks.