This 3800 sf. residence is situated on a five acre parcel that slopes downhill, through the house and offers multiple views of an adjacent creek.
From the very beginning of the design process, the project team has been concerned with integrating the house with the site, to build as close to the creek as legally possible, to provide a reciprocal exterior space for every interior space, and to build with a simple palette that complimented the site. Sequence is a major strategic device in the development of the plan.
The house is simple in plan and form; it is organized in a T shaped scheme that separates the main house from a guest house and garage. The guest rooms splay out at a 45 degree angle. The service spaces have been isolated in plan to create a layer that delays views of the creek, and a diagonal path of exterior circulation punctures the house at the connecting breezeway emphasizing the connection to the waterfall and to the site. This house is consciously reminiscent of vernacular dogtrots and barn structures, while utilizing a palette of contemporary materials.
The residence is clad with stacked field stone, cedar siding in a clerestory band, and galvanized metal roofing. The front is intentionally protective from the harsh southern light and the north is almost entirely glazed to open views to the creek beyond.
The house also takes advantage of numerous passive environmental strategies: the tall central corridor acts as a heat chimney; the metal roof reduces significant heat gain; the house has been located so as to require minimal tree removal and to use local plant material requiring minimal irrigation.