Excerpt: The Shengjergj Retreat Center by Commonsense Studio is designed to foster deep connection—with nature, the self, and others—through grounded living, intimate shared spaces, and fully integrating with the landscape. Guided by principles of simplicity, warmth, and sustainability, the retreat encourages a communal and conscious way of inhabiting space while being rooted in tradition and respecting its natural surroundings.
Project Description
[Text as submitted by architect] The Shengjergj Retreat provided a rare opportunity for commonsense studio to fully express its design approach in the creation of a place that invites visitors to live differently, thanks to its stunning site and thoughtful program.
The retreat is located on a hillside close to the Erzen river and the national road that runs between Tirana and Shengjergj, right on the edge of the Dajti Mountain National Park. It offers a variety of services, from camping to full-fledged hospitality to a meditation and psychology training hall, among others.
Unlike other similar hospitality services, this retreat caters to guests who are seeking to make a more meaningful connection with nature, their own selves, and even other guests. The design was developed with the express intent of fostering the formation of a community of people who would otherwise never meet but who now have something in common: participation in this experience. The retreat extends a warm welcome and provides some services, but guests are encouraged to finish the task themselves. All guests are encouraged to participate in communal activities thanks to the availability of a fully equipped shared kitchen, dining area, and large living room that can be used for meditation, training, or any combination of the three.
Three main principles underpin the design concept:
1. Grounding: visitors are to experience the retreat feeling as close to the ground as possible. It is practised both as a therapeutic method in the outdoor areas, where guests can come into close contact with earthen surfaces, and as a way of life within the retreat’s interior.
Inside, the floor is acknowledged as the common surface of connection between all the visitors. Recalling Albanian tradition, no chairs or lifted furniture will be introduced, mattresses will lay on the floor. There is a heightened awareness that the ground can be touched and felt. Shoes must be removed at all times to maintain a clean and welcoming floor and as a symbolic gesture of familiarity and modesty.
2. Embracing: the interior spaces and the courtyards are well-defined to create an atmosphere of warmth, closeness, and intimacy. The hillside embraces the retreat, which curves gently to blend into its surroundings. Individual rooms are simple with wood-cladding walls and small to come closer to human scale, while the courtyards resemble secluded nooks in nature. The sunken living room invites guests to sit in a circle. There are layers transitioning between the inside and the outside, enhancing the intimate experience of each space.
3. One with nature: the building’s courtyards are just as integral to the design as the closed spaces. They’re intertwined throughout the entire retreat, making it so that all interior spaces are directly connected with a courtyard. The natural wood used for the structure and lining the surfaces, as well as the region’s signature stone walls, create an atmosphere where nature is ever-present. This principle applies not only to the aesthetics of the building from the outside, but also to its internal systems and its off-grid operation. Passive design principles have been applied to improve the building’s energy performance in every season – optimal building orientation, a recessed ground floor, shading for the upper floor rooms, and natural cross-ventilation. Solar power and rainwater are harnessed to reduce environmental impact to a considerable degree. The structure is intended to be constructed using traditional techniques and local natural materials.
This structure represents an effort to reconnect to our roots, both in the way we live and in the way we build.
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