This minimalist house has 182 m², on a site that measures 10 x 25 meters.
A clean architecture, without excesses, without details or superfluous coatings, following the precepts of minimalist design: less is more! Evidencing the purity of its volumes and straight lines.
The volumetry is imposing in the landscape,the volumes overlapping, are like two prisms, white and gray. The darker color on the bottom gives the feeling that the upper volume rests on the bottom, making the scenario lighter.
The art collector clients for RCR relocated to this rural setting where they desired a house that capitalized on the characteristics of the extraordinary site and created an appropriate setting for the display and enjoyment of their collection.
The house and guest quarters occupy a sloping transition zone between a forested butte and a grassy meadow located on an eight-acre valley site in western Montana. The house was sited to access views of the meadow and distant peaks situated at each end of the valley.
The client, in his early fifties gentleman running a local business, bought a land near a scenic lakeside in Asan city. When we visited the site with him, tall and handsome pine trees were standing around the lengthy perimeter of the site. It was impressive to feel the dramatic contrast between the horizontal line of the sweeping water in front of the land and the vertical lines formed by the pine trees stretching to the sky.
Situated on a sloping triangular site facing the sea, the house is conceived as a series of parallel adjoining rooms. They are created by retaining walls, a common feature in the surrounding Mediterranean landscape.
Each room sits at a different elevation following the topography and contains a dedicated program. Access to the entry volume is located at the highest level of the site. A stair makes the slope flow into the house. This entry condition constitutes the first interior experience of the house, that of a viewing apparatus onto the sea.
Nowadays, people in large urban centers tend to lose contact with nature, while rural areas are prone to disappear due to migration towards big cities. The city of Badong on the banks of the Yangtze River presents an integral solution for both scenarios. Even more, its stunning views of the surrounding mountains and river make of this location a unique corner of the world.
Located in the heart of Noe Valley, this urban remodel’s original structure was plagued by a series of haphazard additions; creating a jumbled floor plan full of awkward, dark, and narrow spaces. The clients desired the incorporation of natural light, inspiring our design team to simplify the home’s plan. Orchestrating a clear flow and hierarchy of uncluttered spaces and fully excavating the basement to include a larger garage, storage and livable space, as well as greater accessibility to the home’s rear yard, allowed the homeowner’s to fully embrace the beauty of their home transformation.
It all started with our clients’ purchase of a house over a hundred years old. The traditional building with a gable roof was at its end. Its stone basement was still in a good condition so we decided to take down the rest of the house and use the stone socle in the basement as a foundation for the new house. Our courageous and somewhat risky plan worked out and today, the clients live in a beautiful, modern house which combines the historical soul of its predecessor and nordic esthetics with a touch of industrial style. What can we say? The road to success is not always an easy one but it’s worth it to put in a little extra effort.
In this highly preserved Alpine valley, stringent architectural guidelines allow for little architectural freedom. Strict guidelines are enforced to protect the local heritage but de facto create endless pastiche mountain homes.
To circumvent these limitations, we first became familiar with the existing history and culture so as to understand what functionally drove the designs.
We then integrated this research into our design, avoiding all artificial or obsolete elements while making sure that the building was entirely code compliant from a heritage standpoint.
This alteration and addition project in Ashburton, New Zealand has brought new life to an old home, while respecting its original forms and materiality.
The 58m² addition contains a secondary living room, guest bedroom with attached bathroom, and a “cosy reading nook” all with hydraulic under floor heating, R3.2 wall and R4.0 roof wool insulation, and thermally broken double glazed windows, creating a warm and comfortable internal environment.
A hilly area close to Sakura IC on the East Kanto Expressway. It is a plan of a weekend residence built on the site surrounded by fields and mixed forests.
The client family living in the city center was purchased this site and the surrounding large farmland, and was determined to grow vegetables and fruits and construct a villa for free play and learning in the nature of children.
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