Mr Şerif kaynar who is art lover and a collector belongs to an Ayvalık family ; has started this project back in 2007 after acquiring a derelict old greek tannery. He later purchased the adjacent land to conceptualise an artist studio and the joint terrace between the two buildings. The plans, permissions and the construction took nearly four years to complete.

The building design which uses a rare steel structure with 12 meters high ceiling was created by Mr Serif Kaynar. All historical parts of the building dating back to 1860 was completely kept as original and two separate buildings with a common patio finally came to life as an artist residence and its studio.

Project was developed by two architects Fırat Aykaç and Tulya Madra.

The building which was created was named Barbara after the famous French singer.

La Maison de Barbara as an artist residency opened its doors in year 2016 for the use of art and artists.