![](https://images.suitcasemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/10202639/slow-architecture-building-a-sustainable-tomorrow_652da04cb0580.jpeg)
Anayela
Marrakech, Morocco
This 300-year-old riad is tucked away in a lesser visited part
of Marrakech‘s
medina that feels remarkably untouched – boys play football in the
dusty alleys outside and the air is filled with neighbourly
chatter. “In Morocco, they have a saying that means ‘You don’t find
your house, your house finds you,'” says AnaYela’s director Andrea
Bury. “Someone spotted us with a guide and asked us to have a look
at a derelict building nearby. From the moment we saw it, we knew
we had stumbled upon something magical.” Over the course of a year
the former palace was restored using nothing but hand tools and
traditional techniques. A hundred craftsmen re-sculpted the
building using tadelakt, a labour-intensive waterproof plaster.
During the reconstruction a manuscript was discovered in a hidden
room revealing the story of a 16-year-old girl’s love affair.
Starting with the words “I am Yela”, the tale is hammered in silver
onto the riad’s doors. “I’m not an architect or a designer, but
this project has made me completely rethink the way we live,”
reflects Bury. Soon after completing AnaYela she set up Abury, a
platform to help artisans market their products on an international
scale. Just like AnaYela, Abury preserves traditional skills by
connecting them with modern design.