Hasta La Ideas

Architect Michael Viviano has worked with his mum and dad to create them this concrete and timber house with a gable roof in Houston, Texas.

Situated on a narrow, noisy corner plot, the two-storey house measures 4,250 square feet (395 square metres). The building is constructed of custom-cut, stacked concrete bricks, with contrasting tongue-and-groove larch cladding on the upper level.

Corrugated metal tops the gable roof, while a large glass front door designed by the architect is wrapped in laser-cut steel.

Viviano built Family HQ for his parents, particularly with the help of his mother Catherine, who is now an antique collector. With fifteen years of experience in construction, she helped to lead and advise the young architect, and the house is their first collaborative project.

Located in a busy part of the city, the home’s indoor and outdoor spaces are informed by this constraint. Large square and rectangular windows are oriented towards a protected side garden, rather than the streets.

“Both floors of the house are organised along corridors at the garden’s edge, so light and views are carefully managed throughout the interior,” said the studio.

On the ground level is a living room, a dining room, a storage-lined corridor and a kitchen. A mudroom and garage are connected, past the cooking area. This main floor is designed to be open for entertaining, while the upstairs is more private and traditional. Three bedrooms, two of which have en-suites, are on the upper storey.

The linear garden runs against the long section of the house, and includes a pebbled dining area and a grassy space. Landscaping helps to produce a quiet area against the busy corner. “A row of slender-silhouette sweetgum trees creates a screen that softens the relationship to the street,” said the firm.

Interiors feature white walls, polished concrete floors, and white and grey cabinetry. Upstairs, a warmer tone is created by white oak floors that match the pale wood window casings throughout.

An assortment of antique furniture pieces and paintings, all of which were collected by Catherine, are used to decorate the home.

Houston is currently recovering for severe flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, which experts say was exacerbated by poor urban planning. The city recently released a masterplan to overhaul its Downtown area in wake of the disaster.

Photography is by Peter Molick and Jack Thompson.

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