Villa Mestrovic Split Croatia

This private villa in Split occupies a former artist’s gallery once belonging to Ivan Meštrović, positioned directly opposite the museum that now bears his name and overlooking the Adriatic beyond. For Archer Humphryes, the project began with a deep respect for the site’s cultural and architectural provenance. Meštrović is central to Croatia’s artistic establishment, and the building’s original purpose as a sculptor’s and artist’s studio is integral to its identity. The landmark exterior has been carefully retained, with the original scale and rhythm of the windows preserved to maintain both the building’s civic presence and its historic relationship with light. A pale blush finish has been applied to the façade, softening the architecture while allowing it to sit gently within its coastal setting.

Archer Humphryes led both the architectural and interior design, approaching the villa as a calm, contemporary retreat shaped by its extraordinary location. The generous windows draw daylight deep into the interiors, recalling the clarity and volume required of an artist’s studio. Inside, the palette is deliberately restrained: bleached timbers, local white Savonia stone and beach-bright whites create a serene backdrop that allows the sea and sky to become the dominant colours within the space. The interior reflects outward, with shifting blues and silvers from the Adriatic mirrored across surfaces, reinforcing a constant connection to the landscape and horizon beyond.

The gardens have been restored with a sensitivity to regional heritage, reintroducing palms and lush planting that reference an Italian–Croatian tradition of crafted landscapes and cultivated leisure. Nestled above the water, the villa feels both grounded and expansive, poised between land, architecture and sea. This project continues Archer Humphryes’ long-standing lineage of working within landmark buildings across Croatia, where cultural significance and contemporary living must coexist. Here, the result is a villa that honours Meštrović’s legacy, preserves the spirit of artistic production, and offers a quietly modern way of inhabiting one of Split’s most historically resonant sites.