Hasta La Ideas

The lower storey of this house in Ontario by Toronto studio Williamson Chong Architects is wrapped by a concrete wall that burrows into a hillside, while the upper floor is an overhanging box clad with red-stained timber (+ slideshow).

Named House in Frogs Hollow, the residence is located on a 40-hectare rural estate on the edge of Georgian Bay, and was designed by Williamson Chong Architects for a pair of avid cyclists.

Rather than positioning the house at a vantage point atop a hill, the architects chose a site at the base of the slope, allowing them to submerge part of the ground floor into the landscape of clay earth, grasses and hawthorns.

This places the building within a network of pathways and bike trails, some of which were created by the clients, but also including routes used by native horses, or those taken by local residents on snowmobiles.

“The house is not the final destination, but a stopping place within [the clients’] network of activity,” said the architects.

One long concrete wall carves out a space for the house’s ground floor, lining the edge of an L-shaped plan that wraps and protects a terrace on the eastern side of the building.

Wooden shiplap boards are arranged vertically across the walls of the boxy upper floor and have been stained with a linseed oil-based pigment to give them a dark red tone.

“Designed as an undulating rhythm of varying widths, thin boards are CNC milled to a shallow depth while wider boards are milled with deep striations, casting long shadows that track the sun as it moves around the house,” explained the architects.

Inside the house, a staircase is screened behind an undulating timber wall, leading up from a family living room and kitchen to three bedrooms on the top floor. The living room is also located upstairs and features three glazed walls.

During the cold winter months the house is warmed throughout by underfloor heating and makes the most of solar gain with a series of large south-facing windows. A passive ventilation system helps to keep the house cool in summer without the need for air conditioning.

Photography is by Bob Gundu.

Here’s some information from Williamson Chong Architects:

House in Frogs Hollow

The House in Frogs Hollow, a 2000sf country retreat, is located on a long slope of the Niagara Escarpment overlooking Georgian Bay. The property is a collection of eroded clay hills and protected watershed zones blanketed with a dense field of hawthorn and native grasses. It is not picturesque, but tough and impenetrable.

The clients, who gather at the property throughout the year, are avid cyclists who spent months on the 100 acre property prior to construction cutting in discreet mountain biking trails and learning the paths of the horses and snowmobiles as they emerge from the community over the seasons. Because of their connection to the landscape, a primary site strategy was to resist the inclination to build on top of the hills where one could survey the property in its entirety and instead carve out a building area at the base of the hillside. The house is not the final destination, but a stopping place within their network of activity.

Carved into the landscape, the muscular tectonic of the long concrete wall figuratively clears the site for building while bridging the natural and tempered environments. The concrete has a toughness that mirrors the landscape, providing protection from the prevailing winter winds. During the summer months the wall provides patio shade, creating pools of cooler air that are passively drawn through the house.

Entry is at the west end of the concrete wall and into a service bar containing the stair, kitchen, office, bike workshop, storage room, and mechanical room. This functional zone serves as a backdrop to the glassed in living area that opens on three sides to an extended view of the rolling landscape.

The second level hovers above the concrete wall and living space. It contains the bedrooms, bathrooms, and family room in a tight wrapper of customised shiplap siding. Designed as an undulating rhythm of varying widths, thin boards are CNC milled to a shallow depth while wider boards are milled with deep striations, casting long shadows that track the sun as it moves around the house. The siding is stained with a linseed oil based iron oxide pigment that requires reapplication only once every 15 years.

The first and second floors are connected by a figured stair enclosure. This digitally fabricated element is designed to filter light from the clerestory volume above. At the ground floor it carves into the area below its upper run to gather more space at the entry and allow for a seating area.

The house’s connection to the land is reinforced not only in its architectural form, but also in its environmental footprint. The house is heated with radiant floor loops that supplement the passive winter heat gain from south-facing windows. In addition, there is no mechanical cooling. Instead, the stair tower and operable windows facilitate passive ventilation that draws cool air through the house from shaded exterior areas. Natural materials and pigments were used throughout and a small square footage was maintained to further reduce construction costs and keep future energy consumption to a minimum.

Total Floor Area: 2000 sqft
Design Team: Betsy Williamson, Partner Shane Williamson, Partner Donald Chong, Partner Kelly Doran, Maya Przybylski
Structural Engineering: Blackwell Bowick Partnership Ltd.
Construction Management: Wilson Project Management Inc.
Millwork: Speke Klein Inc.
Siding Fabrication: Tomek Bartczak, Gavin Berman, Peter Odegaard, Taryn Sheppard, Byron White
Stair Fabrication: Byron White, Jeff Powers

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burrows into the Ontario landscape appeared first on Dezeen.

Concrete block walls with window-like apertures surround a courtyard at the front of this Melbourne house by local practice MRTN Architects, which also features an angular wooden roof (+slideshow).

MRTN Architects designed the family home, named Fairfield Hacienda, so that it would engage with neighbouring properties on its suburban street. The designers convinced the clients to downscale the building’s planned footprint by a third, making room for a courtyard that acts as an uncovered outdoor living room.

“The enclosed courtyard is located to the north of the house and creates a buffer between the street and the house, allowing the living spaces to open up to and access northern light and warmth,” the architects explained.

A path that meanders through a small garden leads from the street to the courtyard, which is level with the fronts of the adjacent houses.

The walls shelter the courtyard from the wind but contain holes that allow the residents to see their neighbours and people passing on the street.

A tree at the centre of this outdoor space provides some shade from the sun, while vines and other plants will eventually cover the concrete walls, giving it the appearance of a secret garden.

Concrete blocks enclosing the courtyard continue along the front of the house and also appear internally, where they are polished to a smooth finish.

The material is used for the front half of the house and was chosen for its high thermal mass, which reduces the need for artificial heating and cooling.

Glazed panels create a gap between the solid walls and the angular projecting roof, which is covered on the underside with red cedar.

The faceted ceiling appears to hover above the main living room and kitchen and dining space, where it complements an angular stone-clad breakfast bar.

A small courtyard at the centre of the home separates two wings occupied by the parents and children. Plants inside the glazed structure will gradually grow and increase the privacy of these areas.

The rear half of the property containing the bedrooms and bathrooms is constructed from a timber frame and clad in plywood panels.

Photography is by Peter Bennetts.

Here’s a project description from MRTN Architects:

Fairfield Hacienda

On the fringe of Melbourne’s inner suburbs, this new family home sits in an established residential street of Victorian villas and Californian bungalows. From the footpath, the Fairfield Hacienda with its angled roof fits into the landscape of single level homes, effortlessly picking up the street’s original pattern of hipped and gabled roof forms.

A closer look however, reveals that this new house sits behind a sunny, walled courtyard. This room without a roof, except for a sheltering courtyard tree, is an extension of the living and dining spaces that open onto it. The enclosed courtyard is located to the north of the house and creates a buffer between the street and the house allowing the living spaces to open up to and access northern light and warmth.

The front wall of the courtyard matches the front setback of the adjacent neighbours. In holding the typical front setback of houses along the street, and setting the house to the south, a sun filled outdoor area is created that can be used as a living, dining or play area.

The courtyard space also becomes a semi-public space allowing interaction between the owners and local passerby’s; responding to the owners desire that the house engage with the established residents in the area.

The concrete block walls of the courtyard continue without interruption through the house’s main living areas. These walls remain unchanged except for the patina. Outside they are rough and weathered, but become polished and honed once inside. The design is not precious of the courtyard walls, eventually vines and creepers will take over the exterior concrete block and create a walled garden that will change by season.

The living spaces are covered with an undulating canopy of cedar, a warm blanket of timber. From the exterior the roof form relates to the neighbouring roof geometries along the street but from inside the roof dips and rises to define the dining, kitchen and living spaces below. The timber ceiling is kept clear of down lights and services, all lighting is provided by concealed perimeter uplighting, at night the roof appears to float over the masonry walls below.

Beyond the living spaces the private zones of the house are arranged as two wings, a parents wing and a children’s wing, that wrap around a small courtyard. This central planted courtyard provides light and ventilation to the centre of the house. Currently parents and young children can see each other through this void but over time planting will create greater privacy for older children.

The owners’ brief was to create a long-term family home, somewhere they could become a part of the street and its ongoing history. The Fairfield Hacienda sits comfortably within its local context while creating a contemporary light filled home that is orientated to the north and provides a variety of spaces to live in, both inside and out.

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house by MRTN Architects appeared first on Dezeen.

Glazed panels create views between the floors of these two Edwardian townhouses in London that have been renovated by local architects Studio Octopi to accommodate resident artists (+ slideshow).

By connecting two neighbouring properties, Studio Octopi has doubled the residency capacity of non-profit arts organisation the Delfina Foundation from four to eight, making it London’s largest artist residency provider.

The architects responded to a competition brief aimed at retaining the residential character of the townhouses by focusing on the central role of the hearth. They preserved existing fireplaces on the ground floor, as well as recesses and hearth stones in the artists’ private areas on the top two storeys.

Other original details, including brickwork and concrete lintels that previously surrounded doorways, have been left in their raw state to retain a sense of the buildings’ history.

“Adopting the role of architects-cum-archaeologists, Studio Octopi have created an environment which is unassuming, layered and contextual, while peeling back the layers of ornamentation and finish to expose the period craftsmanship of the buildings,” said the Delfina Foundation.

Throughout the interior, glazed panels in the floors and walls create a visual connection between public and private spaces, and allow light to filter through to rooms in the centre of the building.

Separate entrances for the public and the artists lead to a reception, dining room and kitchen on the ground floor of the five-storey property.

The basement houses a gallery and workshop space, while offices and a library are located on the first floor and the artists’ residences are contained on the top two floors.

Many of the spaces are updated with white walls, pale wood joinery and practical fitted cabinetry that offer a contemporary counterpoint to the grand facade and authentic detailing.

Splashes of bright colour provided by the kitchen cabinets and bathroom floor enhance the modern look of these spaces.

A small terrace located at the basement level provides an outdoor exhibition space, while a terrace on the ground floor can be accessed from the dining room.

“The scheme aims to act as a palimpsest, to retain the integrity and character of the existing buildings while simultaneously creating a series of spaces for residents, staff and visitors to use and enjoy,” said architects Chris Romer-Lee and James Lowe.

Studio Octopi designed the concept at the competition stage with Egyptian office Shahira Fahmy Architects, and subsequently oversaw the £1.4 million development and construction process.

Photography is by Julien Lanoo.

Here’s a press release about the project from Delfina Foundation:

Delfina Foundation opens its newly expanded building

The £1.4m redevelopment has doubled the residency capacity, increasing the number of residents at one time from four to eight, as well as creating 1,650 square feet of additional exhibition and event space. Currently located at 29 Catherine Place in an Edwardian townhouse in Victoria, the Foundation has expanded into the adjacent building, giving it a combined area total of 4,564 square feet.

Adhering to one of the core concepts of the Delfina Foundation’s history as a provider of ‘homes’ for artists, the architects have retained the domesticity of the two houses, exploring the significance of the hearth in a home. Across cultures and throughout history, the hearth has been an integral part of a household, becoming synonymous with notions of domesticity, and place making. Fireplaces are kept in their entirety on the lower floors, and the recesses and hearth stones are retained in the artists’ private spaces.

The designs also set out to maintain the juxtaposition of public and private spaces. The introduction of glazed panels in the floors and walls allow for their integration. Diagonal views across the buildings and through the floors expose the Foundation’s ecosystem at work, as well as opening up the two buildings and bringing in more light throughout the space. With flexible artist workspaces throughout, the five-storey property boasts an expansive gallery/workshop space on the lower ground floor; reception, dining area and kitchen on the ground level; offices and library on the first, whilst the residents’ quarters occupy the two top floors.

Adopting the role of architect cum archaeologists, Studio Octopi have created an environment which is unassuming, layered and contextual, while peeling back the layers of ornamentation and finish to expose the period craftsmanship of the buildings. New insertions are made with a light and considered touch, while detailing is discrete and at times whimsical.

Brickwork to the reveals of the new openings is left exposed and overhead concrete lintels retained in their natural state. By leaving materials in their raw state, a reminder of the building’s beginnings is introduced.

A sense of permanence is imbued in the two townhouses, linking the present with the past and consequently looking ahead into the building’s exciting future.

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townhouses for the Delfina Foundation appeared first on Dezeen.

Dublin practice GKMP Architects has added two tiny extensions to a nineteenth century terraced house in the city, one of which incorporates a wooden window seat looking out onto the garden.

GKMP Architects was asked to renovate and extend the three-storey house in the south of Dublin by replacing an existing bedroom and scullery with an enlarged kitchen, dining room and play room.

Instead of adding an extensive new structure that would have imposed on the garden at the rear of the property, the architects proposed two single-storey extensions with a total footprint of just seven square metres.

“The main architectural problem we identified with the existing house was the great disproportion between living and sleeping areas,” architect Jennifer O’Donnell told Dezeen.

“Since the existing area of the house was considered sufficient to meet the needs of the family, we decided that the challenge in this case was to build as little as possible, to the greatest possible effect,” the architect added.

The new additions are constructed from concrete, which O’Donnell said “was chosen to act as a contemporary addition to the hard cement render of the existing rear facade.”

Bright blue tiles introduce a hit of colour and are used for the surface of a bench built into the concrete of the extension closest to the garden.

“The glazed Italian ceramic tiles were chosen in consultation with the clients and are used as a lining in those places where the wall thickens to form a seat or sill,” O’Donnell explained.

The tiles also appear inside the playroom, which adjoins the new kitchen and dining area and features windows that wrap around two sides.

A corner bench with upholstered sofa cushions is fitted below the windows, while new glazed double doors lead from this room out to the garden.

Both of the new extensions feature large skylights that introduce natural light into the open-plan lower ground floor.

The window seat in the dining area is built from iroko wood, which contrasts with the pale interior walls and frames views of the garden.

The architects also added an oak staircase to connect the new kitchen with an existing living room on the upper ground floor and a new den on the first floor.

The staircase is lined on one side with a bookcase and wraps around a utility room tucked away in an otherwise dark and redundant space at the centre of the house.

Photography is by Alice Clancy.

The architects sent us the following project description:

House Extension at Belmont Avenue, Donnybrook

This project involves the restoration and extension of a three-storey terrace house built towards the end of the 19th century, which has a red clay brick finish in a Flemish bond to the front elevation and a hard cement render finish to the rear. It is one of 6 identical terraced houses, grouped in handed pairs and with identical roof lines, eaves and architectural treatment both to the front and rear.

The existing layout of this house did not lend itself to providing kitchen/dining/living space that was proportional to the rest of the accommodation and so it was proposed to address this imbalance through modifications and a small addition to the existing house rather than through building a large extension in the rear garden.

The new addition consists of two small single-storey extensions, one to the rear of the main part of the house and the other to the end of the existing return on the footprint of the existing lean-to kitchen, that open the lower ground floor of the house to the garden. The new-build is made of cast in-situ concrete with blue glazed tiles.

Inside, a large corner window brings light into the play-room, while a new oak stairs forms a second, more direct connection between ground and first floor living spaces. A new utility space is built into the dark central section of the house, with the new stairway wrapping around and above it as a discrete element, hidden between the old house walls.

Architects: GKMP Architects
Contractor: Sheerin Construction
Engineer: David Maher & Associates

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includes a wooden window seat appeared first on Dezeen.

Japanese architect Shimpei Oda has reworked the dark interior of a humble 1920s house in Kyoto to bring natural light into living spaces and create a small gallery that opens to the street (+ slideshow).

With a width of just 4.1 metres, House in Shichiku is typical of the long and narrow houses built in many of Japan’s dense urban districts, nicknamed “eel beds”, and the challenge for Shimpei Oda was to work out how to bring daylight inside.

“Because the next building was way too close, the inside of the house was so dark, even in the daytime,” said Oda.

The two storeys of the house were re-planned to ensure each of the main rooms received natural light, whether from a window or through openings in the walls or ceilings.

According to Oda, the house had suffered several poor quality renovations in the past, so missing walls and pillars had to be replaced.

“The existing structure was arbitrarily shifted and newly inserted structures and reinforcements were painted with white colour,” he said.

The small gallery is located on the ground floor and is fronted by a square grid of nine windows, some of which fold open to provide a direct access from the street.

The main entrance sits alongside and leads through to a generous open-plan space that functions as a living room, dining space and kitchen.

Bathroom and toilet facilities were considered least in need of natural light, so are grouped together in the space between the living room and gallery.

A lightweight steel staircase with a zigzagging profile leads directly up to a home office with bedrooms on either side. Exposed wooden columns and joists support the roof, while large openings help to bring light through each space.

Photography is by Shinkenchiku-sha.

Here’s the project description from Shimpei Oda:

House in Shichiku

This was the renovation of a house which was built in the 1920s and the house was surrounded by old rows of houses. The house with a frontage of 4.1 metres and depth of 12.8 metres was like so-called “sleeping places of an eel”.

Because the next building was way too close, the inside of the house was so dark even in the daytime. The house had been illogically renovated at several times before so that important pillars and walls were missed.

A resident hoped to live with furniture and paintings. A studio, sanitary, and home office were inserted as volumes of the structure. Those intended not only to reinforce the house but also to softly divide spaces to up and down and left and right.

The whole image was glimpsed from openings and slits which were widely opened and the volumes itself were painted with white colour so that the texture could visually stand up to indicate the depth and extent.

The front of the studio opened to alley was changed from a shutter to windows. To change to the well reflective material of lean-to roof, it functioned as a reflector and could get the natural lightning to the inside so it diffused to bright all. Also, it was concerned the transition of brightness by time.

The existing structure was arbitrary shifted and newly inserted structures and reinforcements were painted with white colour. Those were created the context of time but functionally which meant to indicate those things mixed naturally without any conflicts. The softly divided space may be able to use by any discoveries for the living, studio, and home office as extension with the factor of furniture and paintings which may increase in the future.

Project name: House in Shichiku
Location of site: Kyoto, Japan
Site area: 83.50 sqm
Building area: 53.60 sqm
Total floor area: 91.00 sqm
Type of Construction: wood
Program: house

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house to create light-filled spaces appeared first on Dezeen.