The Tsai Residence in Ancram, New York by HHF Architects + Ai WeiWei

Article source: HHF Architects + Ai WeiWei

The Tsai Residence is a country house designed for two young art collectors. The design reflects their request for a abstract piece sitting almost without scale on top of the site, which is located two hours upstate from New York City.

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

• Architects:HHF Architects + Ai WeiWei
• Project: The Tsai Residence
• Location: Ancram, New York
• Function: weekend house
• Useable Floor Area: 375 m²/4’000 sq ft
• Awards: American Architecture Award 2009, Wallpaper Design Award Nominee 2010
• Photography: Iwan Baan and Nikolas Koenig
• Material: wood construction
• Construction: 2006 – 2008
• Client: private
• Team: HERLACH HARTMANN FROMMENWILER and Ai Weiweiwith Bhavana Hameed, Tom Strub, Fumiko Takahama, Magnus Zwyssig

Aerial (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Deck (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

The four equally sized boxes are built as simple wood construction covered with metal panels on the outside and wood and gypsum panels on the inside. The floor plan is based on the needs of a traditional country house. The organization of the rooms is only partially a direct consequence of the rigid outer form.

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Nikolas Koenig)

The living room focuses on the different light conditions needed for an art collection, while the great view onto the nearby countryside is present without being dominant. The sequence of the different rooms reflects the idea of a private gallery. Natural light comes into the spaces through the openings in between the outer boxes.

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Key details that describe families of conditions help communicate the project’s logic even if changes occur. In the Tsai Residence, the exterior corner façade details illustrate four possible ways that the corrugated metal panels meet accounting for the full breadth of tolerance variations emerging during the construction process. The same counts for all interior wood details: they have all been developed with a consistent detailing methodology in order to achive a standardization which makes it possible to guarantee a certain quality over a long distance.

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Exterior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Nikolas Koenig)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Nikolas Koenig)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Nikolas Koenig)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Nikolas Koenig)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Interior View (Image Courtesy Iwan Baan)

Tags: Ancram, New York

Categories: House, Residential

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