Australian architectural practice Architects Eat recently has completed the restoration of the existing Edwardian house and named it as ELM & Willow House. The U-shaped plan was organized to enclose a courtyard, which to provide a series of visual layering between the spaces, while also creating a better relationship between inside and outside.

Our intention was to create an “Inside is outside is inside” environment, where inside and outside spaces were interchangeable elements.

Architects Eat

+ Project description courtesy of Architects Eat

This project involves restoration and alteration to the existing Edwardian house, and the demolition and construction at the rear for a new addition. The transparency and openness of the new part is a deliberate counterpoint to the introverted Edwardian house with its dark central corridor. Our intention was to create an “Inside is outside is inside” environment, where inside and outside spaces were interchangeable elements. The project evokes a certain reference to the Farnsworth House by Mies van der Rohe, and many courtyard houses in Melbourne by McGlashan and Everist.

The two mature Elm and Willow became the constraints to the project. They informed the arrangement of our new addition, and together with passive solar orientation the result is a U-shaped plan enclosing a north-facing courtyard.

The structure is suspended over the ground to avoid damaging the critical root zones of the two trees. The concrete floor and roof slabs are meticulously detailed, with significant input from our structural engineer, to appear and feel light, floaty and airy, a dialectic relationship between weight and material. This quality is enhanced by a skeletal structure of “skin and bones”, in which the non load-bearing glass sliding windows become a mere breathing skin between occupants and the outside world.

Internal planning strategies were devoted to the spatial hierarchy, in an interplay of inner and outer, and sequence of spaces. The link between the old and new is merged into the layering of spaces where inside and outside becomes one – the transparency of the borders separating interior and exterior allows the eye to perceive other elements that create the spatial order: fences, trees, stones, woods, clouds and borrowed landscape.

The addition has a passive ventilation system, whereby louver windows promote cross ventilation. The building materials specified are non-toxic and from renewable resources. The concrete structure provides thermal masses to the house with the slabs further insulated to minimise heat loss. All glazing are double-glazed to provide comfort to the interior, and the deciduous trees provide essential shading to the house during summer. Energy and water-saving fittings have been used throughout, and rain water is harvested for use in the gardens. A new carport with grid-connect solar power panels is in the design process.

It was a total of 3 years from the first meeting with the clients to the day they moved back into the house, during which the construction took 18 months, the client found passions in designing his gardens and their first child was born. It is a house for enjoyment, living in landscape with the family, and appreciation of tranquillity, intimacy and sanctuary – which were our original brief.

+ Project credits / data

Project: ELM & Willow House
Architects: Architects EAT
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Project Team: Albert Mo, James Coombe, Eid Goh
Structural Engineer: R. Bliem & Associates
Building Surveyor: Building Strategies
Builder: Sargant Construction
Landscaper: Heath Landscape
Project Area: 278 sqm
Project Year: 2007-2009
Construction Year: 2008-2009
Photographs: Earl Carter & James Coombe (j.a.coombe@gmail.com)

+ All images and drawings courtesy of Architects Eat

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Stunningly Modern Bainbridge Island Home

The clean modern lines of this newly constructed waterfront home are a rare and perfect match for the person looking for simplicity and a zen-like quality in a home. Striking and progressive materials are utilized throughout in this smart and edgy design. Featured in a recent Seattle AIA exhibition, the architect/builder has been recognized as one of the top twelve firms that will shape the future of Seattle architecture with their forward thinking.

The home’s exterior is comprised of clear tongue-and-groove cedar that is vertically mounted to the roofline and a rainscreen siding system made of Cembonit panels. The Cembonit panels shield a waterproof membrane that allows an exchange of inside and outside air. The purpose is to create a healthier interior air quality by allowing the home to breath while still providing insulation.

As you turn the corner to the great room, you are greeted with an overwhelming view through a dramatic wall of windows reaching clear to the ceiling and seemingly bringing nature directly into the living space. The architect designed the ceiling and outdoor soffit as one continuous line so as not to distract the eye from the immensity of the clouds, water & greenery. Between windows, a sleek, tall column houses a two-sided, see-through propane fireplace that provides definition of living spaces, but does not distract from the view. Sliding doors open to one of three ironwood decks.

The home is sited on approximately ½ acre and offers nearly 90 feet of sandy waterfront that is an accessible setting for swimming, kayaking and long walks on the beach. Yet, the home is located only minutes from the Bainbridge Island-Seattle ferry in a quiet, cul-de-sac neighborhood.

For more information about the green architecture visit: www.bainbridgeislandmodernhome.com

+ All images and drawings courtesy of www.bainbridgeislandmodernhome.com

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Dutch architectural firm Studio Noach and architect Anne Holtrop developed a floating spa wellness center based on recycled waste, in combination with a high tech sustainable climate system and an ecological and botanical coating of plants and flowers, which was invented by Frenchman Patrick Blanc.

‘Floating Gardens/SpaWellness Amsterdam‘ is a world first, and from February 20th to May 16th, 2010 on display during the exhibition “Architecture of Consequence’ at the NAi (Netherlands Architecture Institute) Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

+ Press release courtesy of Studio Noach

Floating spa from hamburger clamshells with green walls

Studio Noach founders Kizito Musampa and Michel Kreuger along with architect Anne Holtrop developed a floating spa wellness center based on recycled polystyrene – used styrofoam including hamburger clamshells and coffee cups. The walls and roofs contain a coating of flowers and plants by the inventor of the ‘living wall’, Frenchman Patrick Blanc.

‘Floating Gardens/SpaWellness Amsterdam’ is a world first, and from February 20th to May 16th, 2010 on display during the exhibition “Architecture of Consequence” at the NAi (Netherlands Architecture Institute) Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Patrick Blanc who designs his Living Walls all over the world explains:

Do plants really need soil? No, … Earth is no more than a tool. Just water containing minerals and nutrients, along with common daylight and carbon dioxide are necessary for plants to make photosynthesis possible.

Blanc has proven his expertise on many locations including museums around the world. From the perspective of nature it is possible for plants to grow on a surface where there is no soil. As long as there’s no shortage of water.

‘Floating Gardens / SpaWellness Amsterdam’ has been developed for the lake near the city where plenty of fresh water is available. A similar island has never been developed anywhere else. A floating sustainable biotope, using recycled materials with a vegetation coating that from its pores literally breaths oxygen and wellness is unique for our planet.

Architecture

A surface is – apart from the waterside – probably the most neutral environment for architecture. It is difficult to imagine the architecture of the country to continue on the water. But what architectural form can be found for a building on the water? The approach for floating gardens is to create a construction of a landscape. Like a stone of Alberto Giacometti is a construction of a stone.

The architecture makes the walls and ceilings the outer for hills and valleys. Inside the interior follows the counter form of the landscape. Amorphous areas with faceted ceilings, all of different sizes and heights, blend as one.

A visitor will experience a sequence of baths, panoramic saunas, chill and relax areas. From the interior, the windows frame the constructed landscape and give access to outdoor terraces and pools.

Sustainability

The composite GreenRexwall ™ was developed in collaboration with the German constructor Aquahouse GmbH and is that strong and constructive that building cement, steel or bricks are no longer needed. The ultimate isolates, is constructive, and light – not important – it is particularly buoyant. Not just the recycling of polystyrene is environmentally friendly Floating Gardens, the vegetation on the walls and roof, CO2 is converted to oxygen, and particulate matter demolished.

The vegetation is a breeding ground for birds, butterflies and insects but most will feel at home. The innovative technical installations provide big energy savings. The surrounding water acts as a heat exchanger, like a refrigerator works conversely. It can serve as heat – and cooling source and is up 70% more efficient than conventional energy systems.

In the Netherlands, one quarter of the land is below sea level and 50% is only one meter above sea level.

Amsterdam seems well on the way with this project as the first world stage to rise to the opportunities it offers in such areas as exposure, sustainable development and quality of life.

Patrick Blanc’s ‘Living Wall’ is according to TIME Magazine in 2009 amaong the World’s 50 best inventions.

In 2008 architect Anne Holtrop received on behalf of the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund the Charlotte Köhler prize for architecture.

Studio Noach was awarded for the concept of ‘floating gardens’ during the ‘Les Respiration’ conference with an ‘Oxygen Award’. Les Respiration is supported by the French Ministry of the Environment and the Committee Sustainable Energy of the European community.

+ Project credits / data

Architect: Studio Noach
Project: Floating Gardens / SpaWellness Amsterdam
Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Green: Living Wall – Frenchman Patrick Blanc

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Polish studio mode:lina architektura & consulting, in collaboration with architect Zbigniew Pyda and graphic designers Zbigniew Flakus and Krzysztof Pyda have created a brochure for potential investors interested in locating their capital in Sunset Paradise resort on Zanzibar island.

+ Project description courtesy of mode:lina

Resort “Sunset Paradise” is situated on the west coast of Zanzibar ½ hr drive from Stone Town Airport. The size and shape of the plot make it the perfect location for an exclusive holiday resort.

There are several sandy paths that lead down to the sea – whether the tide is high or low, giving perfect conditions for bathing. The entire bay is free of rocks and sea urchins and the water is clear.

On the north side of the plot there is a river, providing an additional attraction.

Resort facilities:

• AREA PROPERTY 12,1 ha
• MAIN ENTRANCE 10,0 m2
• RECEPTION, LOBBY, SHOPS ca. 90,0 m2 + hall 100m2
• LODGES 15-16 all (multi- roomed Villas) 100,0-145,0 m2 each

Designed as a traditional African house, luxuriously appointed.
Each 15 lodges are discretely scattered along the beach and cliff line, each with panoramic views of the clear turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean, ensuring maximum privacy and seclusion.

Designed and positioned to make them feel like a part of the surrounding landscape, the lodges are bulit from local traditional materials and topped with thatched (makuti) roofs, allowing the invigorating sea breeze to circulate and affording a cool atmosphere day and night.

Large private wooden verandas give an impression of living outdoors.

Related posts:

1. 7 famous architects gather in Dellis Cay’s Paradise
2. Alila Villas Uluwatu | WOHA architects
3. Juvet Landscape Hotel | Jensen & Skodvin Architects

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Spanish architecture firm A-cero have designed a house in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Spain.

+ Project description courtesy of A-cero

The house is hided behind a harmonious sculptural set of curved walls made of stone dark granite and marble travertino that seem to emerge from a big water plate arranged in the house entry.

In addition to the beauty of this structure, it offers a high grade of privacy and tact between the exterior (street) and the house. Other more, this structure goes to the back part, as a front, where is a natural, clear and kind scenery.

This block disposition and the house plot (a descending slope towards a lake) are used to distribute the house in two plants: a high floor, with exterior access, and a low floor. Both of them are looking to a wide terrace with a pergola and to the garden house.

In the high plant, we find a very wide and luminous hall provided with natural light for top skylights, and with two plates of waters dominated by two bronze lions. In addition it is used to lead to the kitchen, wine vault, dining room, lounge, office – library, and to the most private area: the principal bedroom, dressing-room, bath, interior swimming pool and small gymnasium. Also we find the stairs that descend to the low floor where there are a games lounge and a movies room, kids and guests bedrooms and the service area with two bedrooms in suite and with a wide area for the housework. All the house rooms are provided with wide large windows in a dark safety glass. These windows (that also works as doors) and a lot of house elements are completely computerized and motorized: lighting, safety, blinds, air conditioning … everything is centralized.

The high floor communicates with a terrace. In the lounge the access to outside is made by a long large window that provides a continuity sensation from the interior space to outside.

This terrace is covered by a pergola made of an aluminium structure that supports the sculptural premeditation of the building.

In one of the side parts of the garden, there is a relaxation area with a pond of Buddhist inspiration.

+ Project credits / data

AUTHOR of the project: A-cero, Joaquin Torres architects – Joaquín Torres (director), Rafael Llamazares (architect partner, collaborator)
Project: House in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid “Vivienda 42”
Location: Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid “Vivienda 42”, Spain
Date of project: October 2006
Date of termination: April 2009
Photographer: Ferran Silva (A-cero)
Gardening/ landscaping: Luis Vallejo

+ All images courtesy of A-cero

Related posts:

1. House Pozuelo Madrid | A-cero
2. House in Dominican Republic | A-cero
3. House in Somosaguas | A-cero

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London-based architectural firm Foster + Partners recently unveiled the CircleBath located in Bath, UK. The three-storey building is set into the hills facing to the protected green belt, internally the function rooms are planned around a central light filled atrium, promoting a sense of orientation and intimacy. The building provides operating theatres, bedrooms, consultation, treatment and recovery spaces, and offers both in-patient and out-patient accommodation. It is Foster + Partners’ first hospital project and expected to open to patients in February.

The compact design encourages a sense of community and well-being with facilities more comparable to a luxury hotel rather than a traditional hospital.

Foster + Partners

+ Press release courtesy of Foster + Partners

CircleBath, opening of the first hospital designed by Foster + Partners

CircleBath is Foster + Partners’ first hospital and the first in a programme of new independent hospitals which offer a radical departure from orthodox approaches to hospital planning. After a period of commissioning, CircleBath is expected to open to patients in February.

The compact design encourages a sense of community and well-being with facilities more comparable to a luxury hotel rather than a traditional hospital. The three-storey hospital is set into the hills on the edge of protected green belt nine kilometres south east of Bath. It is planned around a central light filled atrium, promoting a sense of orientation and intimacy that is commonly lacking in larger hospitals.

Public entry is from the road on the north directly into the atrium on the ground level floor. The northern façade comprises dark panelling at the lower levels, while on the south, extensive glazing opens out to views over the surrounding rolling countryside. Appearing to float above this recessive skirting, the rectangular upper volume and roof, enclosing all twenty-eight bedrooms, is clad in a reflective lattice of aluminium shingles.

The double-height atrium forms the focus for patients, staff and visitors, with private consultation rooms leading from it at ground level and in-patient bedrooms arranged around it above. The main reception point, café and nurses’ station occupy the atrium where daylight, drawn through the circular sky lights, is softened by a translucent fabric ribbon tracing the shapes. The colour palette is a warm and friendly mix of ochre and rust, with natural wood acoustic panels above, interspersed with glass panels providing a visual connection to the atrium from the bedroom floor.

Throughout the building, there is an emphasis on natural light and views: operating theatres and recovery spaces on the lower level are fully glazed to the south, looking out on to a private garden. The bedrooms on the upper floor look out onto balconies, planted with herbs and shrubs, lining the building’s perimeter and oriented to maximise views across the countryside. Sympathetic landscaping emphasises the therapeutic natural environment to create the opposite of an institutional atmosphere.

Divisions between departments are minimal, easing the stress involved in consultation, treatment and recovery for patients and reducing walking distances for staff.

+ Project credits

Architect: Foster + Partners
Project: CircleBath
Location: Bath, UK
Photographs: Nigel Young

+ All images and drawings courtesy of Foster + Partners | Photo by Nigel Young

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1. Riva Hotel | Foster + Partners
2. New Amsterdam Pavilion unveiled in Battery Park | Ben van Berkel/ UNStudio
3. Building Better Healthcare Award + Akershus University Hospital by C. F. Møller Architects

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Sweden-based architectural firm Visiondivision has designed an extension for a lake house in southern Stockholm.

+ Project description courtesy of visiondivision

Visiondivision was commissioned to design an extension to a villa for two kids in a picturesque lake setting in southern Stockholm. The owner of the old house had met his new wife in Thailand and the couple wanted to move and settle down in Sweden along with her two children.

The beautiful nature surrounding the plot and the fact that the house would be occupied by two kids became the main key to our design. Instead of designing a house with expensive materials and detailing we deliberately chose rather cheap windows, facade materials and so on, thus allowing a bigger budget for a more playful architecture. It is much cheaper to get something wonderful done with landscaping than traditional architecture so we made a landscape surface with enhanced elements around and inside the house for the kids to thrive in. Being a kid in Sweden means that you naturally spend a lot of time in the nature which our country have an abundance of and we wanted to give the two new citizens a safe base where they can explore their new surroundings and be able to appreciate it to the fullest.

Landscaping

To be able to create a steady foundation for the new house, huge earth masses where to be taken away and used to create a hill which we enhanced with different elements such as an outdoor cinema and a sledge slope. A carpet of artificial grass connects seamlessly with the natural grass on the hill and enters via the terrace to the living room between the two children’s room.
A custom made grass sofa, a couple of grassy knolls that also functions as lighting make the interior more organic and enhancing the nature experience even further. These artificial hills can be moved around and can be put outside as well.

Two pairs of big glass doors on both sides of the room makes one fully take in the surroundings and creates the impression that the nature goes in to the house, this effect is even more apparent when the doors are fully open. The carpet of artificial grass continues out on the other terrace as well as to the hallway and makes a stop just before the old house.

The excavations left a big void under the house. By ordering all the windows from Poland instead of Sweden we could afford to do two secret caves in that void. The caves were made out of concrete with in-cast IKEA drinking glass as small lanterns. One cave is directed to a lush grass knoll that leads down to the lake and is disguised with artificial grass to blend in. The other cave is pointed towards a patch of forest and is left in its raw concrete. Besides from being an excellent hidden escape route, the caves can be equipped with poker tables, hold new found pets from the nearby forest and much more. The caves are accessible from both the outside and from the children’s room by hatches in the floor.

The outdoor cinema has six chairs that are inserted in a concrete foundation in the sloping hill along with a secret compartment for a microwave for snacks and popcorn and a projector. A screen is set up between two trees that also have two bird houses on its trunks which in fact are two disguised speakers for this small outdoor cinema. At daytime this is a perfect place to just take in the lake atmosphere and observing bird behavior, night time is movie time.

The house

The entrance to the new house is a removed window from the oriel and makes the old house inserted in the new building and shapes the walls of the children room next to it.
The hallway that leads to the old house slopes because of the differences in heights of the two houses and makes a nice transition from the traditional Swedish house down to the new and playful one.
The children’s rooms are almost as two separate units with the landscape between and around them. Except for the hatches in the floor, the children’s rooms are quite normal with wooden floors and white walls.

The house itself follows the municipality’s different regulations such as the pointed roof and the appearance. Wood is the predominantly material in this region, like the existing house and the neighbors. We chose white corrugated metal sheeting that looks like wood from a distance but is more alive and reflecting as one comes closer and gets nice shadow effects from the surrounding trees. Choosing metal sheets also allowed us to have the walls and the roof in the same material which creates a very consistent building. The beautiful setting and the strict whitish house combined with the eccentric landscaping makes it a great place to grow up in.

+ Project credits / data

Project: Hill Hut
Architects: visiondivision
Location: Stockholm
Design team: Anders Berensson & Ulf Mejergren
Construction year: 2009
Project area: 55m2
Photographs: Clive Jenkins

+ All images and drawings courtesy of visiondivision

Related posts:

1. Hill Top Residence | K2Ld Architects
2. Secret Sauna | Visiondivision
3. Tornado tower | Visiondivision collaboration with Markus Wagner

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Ala Moana, is a recently completed project on Hamilton Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia. The house was designed by Australian architect Omiros One Architecture to maximize the views and set at different levels to follow the natural ground slope with minimal cutting into the site.

Together with the harmonious exterior colour scheme, these elements diffuse the perimeter and help to integrate the building form with the natural character of the site.

Omiros One Architecture

+ Project description courtesy of O1A

ALA MOANA

Ala Moana takes its name from the Hawaiian term “ocean pathways.” Designed by Omiros One Architecture (O1A), this five bedroom luxury residence commands endless ocean views from atop a steeply inclined site on Hamilton Island in the heart of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef and combines a relaxed tropical resort ambience with luxury, sophistication, privacy and tranquillity.

The architectural design process involved meeting all objectives of the client brief whilst responding to the unique site conditions, environmental imperatives and planning requirements. The project was challenging on many different levels:
- the sloping terrain,
- the compelling views,
- the environmentally sensitive location,
- the requirement to integrate with its the natural setting

The house is sited and designed to maximize the views and take advantage of the uniqueness of the location and natural layout whilst:
- minimizing the impact on the land
- minimizing potential overlooking from future developments around it
- capturing the desired prevailing winds in summer
- minimizing exposure to the undesirable winter winds

One key issue considered by the architect was how the architecture could be viewed and appreciated by the visitor from close up on such a steep site. The solution was to design a meandering buggy path which approaches the house from below, a journey of discovery with different aspects, textures and functions unfolding slowly at close range, including such features as the stepped layout of the building and the sheet of water cascading down the slope and reflecting the sky from within. The pathway circumnavigates the building and brings the visitor to the entry where the glass-edged double doors allow the first glimpse of the best attribute of the site, the breathtaking view.

Once inside, the architecture becomes a series of frames for the view, working hand in hand with the surrounds to enhance the experience. The internal reflective pool rolls through the site to the open view at front, fusing with the sky and appearing to spill into the ocean beyond. The inside becomes the outside and the swimming pool becomes the focal point of the living space.

Another key concern of the design process was how to reduce the visual impact of the new structure. This was achieved by breaking down the mass of the building into smaller articulated parts; four main volumes of different heights, each crowned with curved, wing-like zinc roofs. These volumes are set at different levels to follow the natural ground slope with minimal cutting into the site; their materiality further reduced by opening large areas of the envelope with full-height glazed folding doors. The result is a lightness and transparency which is not typical of the dominant architectural character of the island.

The design responds to the orientation and microclimate of the site, drawing in the cooling ocean breezes from below via the rosewood-framed folding glass doors which open onto generous outdoor terraces, the infinity-edge pool and a lush garden backdrop. Summer shade is maximized by the generous roof overhangs, slatted cedar screens and strategically-placed trees which protect the privacy of the occupants within. Together with the harmonious exterior colour scheme, these elements diffuse the perimeter and help to integrate the building form with the natural character of the site. Where ever possible, materials were selected to meet sustainable criteria such as low embodied energy, low environmental impact and recyclability.

The building can be classified as both sea-side residence and luxury resort, of a typically Australian character, and Ala Moana evolves this specific typology through its seamless integration of indoor and outdoor living spaces, combination of spaciousness with private and intimate zones, resort grandeur with human scale, opulence with earthy tones and natural materials.

+ About O1A

Omiros One Architecture (O1A) is a design-orientated practice with a focus on environmental sustainability. Based in Melbourne and Abu Dhabi, O1A is currently involved in projects across the Middle East, India, China and Australia, including the prestigious Yas Island Yacht Club in Abu Dhabi which is set to open its doors by February 2009

+ Project credits / data

Architect: Omiros One Architecture (O1A)
Project: Ala Moana
Location: Hamilton Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia
Photographer: Scott Newett, O1A

+ All images courtesy of O1A

Related posts:

1. The Six Ramsgate Residence | Wallflower Architecture + Design
2. Helix Hotel | Leeser Architecture
3. The Yas Hotel Abu Dhabi | Asymptote Architecture

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Residance O is the refurbishment project designed by Italy-based Andrea Tognon Architecture, the new square floor plane was completed by filling the missing corner to the old L shape plan, it looks clean.

+ Project description courtesy of Andrea Tognon Architecture

The building we were call to refurbish was built in the 70’s as imitation of vernacular architecture of the Veneto countryside area. Was looking pretty fake. The floor plan was a square were a corner was missing (so was an L shape). The roof was a concrete slab juting out in a very inelegant and bad proportionated way. So we decide to add the corner that was missing to complete the square floor plane. Because the total redefinition of the insulation parameter we reshape the profile of the building cutting the old roof edge and redesign the junction between roof and perimetrical walls. The entire interior layout was redesign, all the walls and roof insulated, the eating system switched to solar energy.

+ Project credits / data

Architect: Andrea Tognon Architecture
Project: Residance O
Location: Teolo, Italy

+ All images and drawings courtesy of Andrea Tognon Architecture

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1. Ala Moana | Omiros One Architecture
2. Headquarters for Marchesini France | LAN Architecture
3. Sapphire Gallery | XTEN Architecture

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New York-based architectural firm Morris Sato Studio has designed the YN-13 House located in Shelter Island. The house was organized on its site as three independent volumes (Main, guest house and garage) enclosing a swimming pool and a courtyard, conceived as a buoyant mass and inspired by historic Japanese residential structures in Kyoto and Kanazawa, the skin is finished in bleached vertical battens and clapboard siding merge with stainless steel roofing to form a unified textured appearance between the walls and the roof.

Here is the link to the interview video.

+ Project description courtesy of Morris Sato Studio

YN-13 House is organized on its site as three independent volumes enclosing a courtyard-like space with a swimming pool at its center. The biased cut of the main house’s pitched roof and its protruding corners underscore primary views of the landscape and ocean.

Conceived as a buoyant mass and inspired by historic Japanese residential structures in Kyoto and Kanazawa, the house’s bleached cedar vertical battens and clapboard siding merge with the standing seams of the terne-coated stainless steel roofing to visually unify the wall and roof surfaces that, over the course of a day, lends the house an aura of both permanence and temporality.

On the interior, the open, loft-like first level allows for an uninterrupted diagonal flow of space, and the expansive glazing at the corners connect indoor and outdoor activities.

The second level’s bedrooms are punctured with a series of openings and terraces providing light and views. A large interior void joins the first and second floors with light and air and serves as a spatial counterpoint to the masonry chimney tower on the exterior.

+ Project credits / data

Project: YN-13 House
Location: Shelter Island, New York
Architect: Morris Sato Studio

+ All images and drawings courtesy of Morris Sato Studio

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1. Slice House | Studio ST Architects
2. Eco-Friendly Cascade House | Paul Raff Studio
3. Plan, Elevation & Section of Cascade House | Paul Raff Studio

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