In her travels back and forth between London and Dammam, Saudi Arabia, the owner of this modern home – a romantic novelist – needed a beautiful place to come home to. Villa Anbar, designed by British architect Peter Barber, fits the mold to a T with its modern profile, curving rooflines, and a cool, white facade dotted with windows. According to the architect, “The building is an essay in the stripped aesthetic of Arabic vernacular and early Modernism. It is also a critical exploration of the complex social and power relationship encoded within the layout of a Saudi house.” The single-storey design sits at the center of a garden encircled by a high wall. Inside, the home is divided into two distinct areas – the front which houses the living and entertaining areas, and the rear of the home devoted to privacy with its sleeping quarters. The home’s various rooms, which include two reception areas, a kitchen, two bathrooms, two powder rooms, three bedrooms and a maid’s room, all lead to the heart of the home – a central outdoor courtyard. Topping off this luxurious design is a rooftop terrace, complete with an alfresco kitchen and overlooking the pool and waterfall in the garden. Peter Barber Architects.
