The client's primary request was to conceptualize a space that seamlessly intertwines the client's lifestyle with the immediate environment, while also providing the homeowner with the opportunity to shade activities marked by new memories, memories of the Adriatic Sea, and scents.

The main design motive was for the house to be a reflection of its surroundings, achieved through functional programming and design, enabling the integration of context and user, land and house, immediate ambiance and distant vistas, interior and exterior.

The Učka slope, recognizable for its oak, chestnut, and laurel forest, mandated that spatial intervention align with the native vegetation and the existing slope, allowing views of the Adriatic Sea. This idea of considering the microclimate led to the house's base merging into the terrain, while the upper volume hovers among the trees, encouraging natural surroundings to blend with the residents' life.

The main idea behind the house's design was to achieve harmony with the surrounding authentic environment in as few moves as possible. Spatial units cascade following the existing terrain, opening the possibility of connecting with the surrounding landscape on multiple levels. The house's proportion and horizontal distribution of functions resulted in the creation of a floating cube, emphasizing horizontality through orientation and form, becoming part of the land's contours.

The Učka slope's incline, mild winters, pleasant summer evenings, and few cloudy days during summer influenced the characteristic relationship between the house's formal-spatial units. By shifting the cube, additional spatial qualities were formed between the exterior and interior of the house, achieving better climate control for the residents. Treating the first-floor facade with mirrors creates the illusion that nature has 'penetrated' the house at ground level, further highlighting the beauty of the native environment characterized by palms, cypresses, bamboos, and agaves. The terrain's morphology, existing vegetation, and the Opatija climate were forces that influenced the house's program and internal functional layout.

The building's facade is clad with three different finishes. The basement floor facade is covered with rough-cut stone slabs 7-10 cm thick. The first-floor facade is mirrored, visually preserving the immediate surroundings. The second-floor facade is clad with finely finished stone slabs 3cm thick. All stone walls are built from local stone (Plano), while the retaining walls are made of roughly hewn stone, accentuated by ambient lighting. All stone used on the building's facade, around the pool, and on the terraces is sourced locally for better integration into its natural environment. Room floors are covered with natural wood, while the living areas feature stone flooring, creating a sense of continuous connection with nature. Interior columns are also clad in local stone, while glass railings serve as contrasting materials that highlight the presence of stone indoors.

The ground floor houses the main entrance, a garage for three cars, utility rooms, a laundry room, a TV room, sauna, and a gym with access to the atrium on the north side. The first floor is divided into two sections. One section comprises the kitchen, bathroom, and a large living room that opens onto a large terrace with a pool and outdoor amenities. The second section includes a bedroom with a bathroom, a toilet, and a study with access to the terrace - ground floor. The ground floor is connected to the basement floor and the access road by a single-flight staircase. The outdoor space consists of green terraces cascading towards the ground floor. Grass, local shrubs, and trees are planted on them.

The second floor is set back on the south facade compared to the first floor and ground floor. With its architecture, it forms a canopy above the ground floor pool terrace. The floor is accessed via a single-flight staircase from the ground floor living room and consists of a master bedroom, two children's bedrooms, and a bathroom. All rooms are connected to the longitudinal element of the terrace, which extends all rooms towards the open space with a view of the sea.

The central theme of the interior was to create a platform for viewing the exterior. The inspiration for the interior was an old Istrian house dominated by natural materials, wood, and stone, interpreted in a modern way. During design, strict attention was paid to ensure that no element or unit stands out in design compared to the general ambiance of nature introduced into the interior. The leading motif in the interior was long views opening up to nature and the sea, introducing vistas into the space through large glass surfaces. The interior itself was used to introduce nature further by incorporating mirrored surfaces at characteristic locations.

The biggest design challenge was to position a building that meets client program requirements on a narrow and elongated sloped plot while respecting the immediate ambiance. The main challenge in implementation occurred during the so-called pandemic, where communication and construction work were slowed down due to difficult conditions.

Considering the direction of the building southwest-northeast, with content orientation towards the sea, the access zone with the corresponding yard and grounds follows the building's position. In this way, the entire spatial organization of the plot follows the contours, cutting into the slope. Landscape design follows the cascading formations, creating several smaller ambient vegetation zones around the house.