grand award
house in the blue mountains, eastern pa.
bohlin cywinski jackson
wilkes-barre, pa.
This calm, primal dwelling was Bohlin Cywinski Jackson's response to a remarkable landscape, a forest and field overlooking a preserve for migratory eagles and hawks. Peter Bohlin, FAIA, positioned the house on a hill looking across the valley to the verdant rise of Hog Mountain. The light, wood-framed living spaces face out into this view, but they also turn inward to a central limestone-walled
 Photo: Michael Thomas
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courtyard. “We thought of the stone courtyard almost as some place that might have pre-existed and to give a kind of clarity to the plan,” Bohlin says. “In the house, you're well aware of the counterpoint of the square stone court, as well as the surrounding landscape.”
BCJ carefully manipulated the entry sequence, which begins with a drive through a field and dense forest. Visitors enter the house at the stone court and move through to the entry, which is centered on two massive limestone chimneys on axis with the view. “You tend not to see that view until you arrive inside the
 Photo: Michael Thomas
Glassy living pavilions look across to the Blue Mountains, a counterpoint to the heavy limestone walls and hearth that BCJ used to evoke a primal sense of shelter.
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house, because you're driving away from it coming in,” Bohlin explains. Complex in its simplicity, and vice versa, the judges were impressed with the design's “conceptual clarity and elegant detailing,” and pronounced it “memorable.”
principal in charge / project architect: Peter Bohlin, FAIA, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson;
general contractor: Curtis J. Bailey, Curtis J. Bailey Inc.,
 Photo: Michael Thomas
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New Ringgold, Pa;
interior designer: Stephen Shadley, Stephen Shadley Designs, New York City;
project size: 12,000 square feet;
site size: 160 acres;
construction cost: Withheld;
photographer: Michael Thomas.
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grand award
the prospect, la jolla, calif.
jonathan segal, faia
san diego
Jonathan Segal, FAIA, can't resist a challenge. When building his own house, the San Diego–based architect/builder/developer chose an irregularly shaped lot in busy downtown La Jolla, right across from the town's commercial center. To provide sufficient privacy while still getting the expansive outdoor living spaces he and his family wanted, he'd have to come up with some clever maneuvers.
And he did, with the help of his wife and business partner, Wendy. They surrounded the home's concrete-and-glass structure with walls of rusted steel, effectively blocking intrusive noises and views. A constantly running fountain also filters out city sounds. Floor-to-ceiling sliding glass walls open the first floor up to a lap pool on one side and a terrace on the other, allowing the Segals and their two children to enjoy their urban oasis to the fullest. “When you're in this house, you forget the complexities of the site,” said a judge.
Simple, streamlined materials, such as sapelli plywood ceiling panels
 Photo: Steve Simpson
The home's serene atmosphere belies its busy urban location.
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and scored concrete floors, help the house fall into line aesthetically with Segal's modernist, boutique multifamily housing in downtown San Diego. “Everything's about shaking the building so the parts fall off, so you get that minimal expression,” he says.
principal in charge / project architect / general contractor / land planner / interior designer: Jonathan Segal, FAIA; landscape designer: Wendy Segal, La Jolla; project size: 6,000 square feet; site size: 0.2 acre; construction cost: $198 per square foot; photographer: Steve Simpson, except where noted.
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 Photo: John Edward Linden
The copper roof tilts up toward the south and the ocean. Bottom left and right: The dining terrace and the art studio enjoy water views. A second bedroom, a laundry room, and a family-room tower define the entry courtyard.
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merit award
orleans residence, orleans, mass.
charles rose architects
somerville, mass.
Strung out along the lip of a naturally occurring bowl, this glass-and-cedar house reinforces the forms in the landscape. The project's thin L footprint contains a main house, an art studio/guest apartment, and a detached office tower. Despite its size and spread, however, the year-round house feels transparent, warm, and human. Charles Rose, AIA, achieved those qualities by positioning the major rooms—dining room, living room, and master suite—on the south side of the house,
 Photo: John Edward Linden
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which has long, languid vistas across Pleasant Bay to the ocean. The roof swoops upward in response to the water view but is lower along the bowl, creating more intimate spaces for the kitchen and a secondary bedroom. “We wanted to make this big gesture, fitting the rooms into the site rather than starting with a big rectangle,” Rose says. The judges admired the project's “nice spatial qualities, well-crafted detailing, and interaction with the site.”
principal in charge / project architect: Charles Rose, AIA, Charles Rose Architects; general contractor: Scott Sisson, Homes by Sisson, Orleans, Mass.; landscape architect: Stephen Stimson, Stephen Stimson Landscape Architects, Falmouth, Mass.; interior designer: Haynes Roberts, New York City; project size: 7,000 square feet; site size: 5 acres; construction cost: $300 per square foot; photographer: John Edward Linden.
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 Photo: David Sundberg/Esto
With its exaggerated and slightly distorted vertical features, Kaehler/Moore's Rye Residence is a little like a child's drawing. The house stretches upward, the better to be seen from the driveway's 300-foot approach.
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merit award
rye residence, rye, n.y.
kaehler/moore architects
greenwich, conn.
Designing for a rear lot can be tricky. Not only must the house relate to its immediate neighbors (positioned more prominently at streetside), but the approach is invariably lengthy. “The narrow street frontage and the long drive back from the street helped to produce a kind of forced progression and perspective,” says architect Joeb Moore. “The tall, simple gable form lures the visitor's eye and provides a basic, childlike notion of what a house looks like.”
The tall shingled house with its sweeping—and slightly exaggerated—rooflines and entry tower takes its cues from Victorian structures seen along the 300-foot approach. Here, though, many familiar forms are tweaked. Stainless steel outriggers sub for typical wooden brackets under the standing-seam lead-coated copper roof, and the chimney is topped with perforated stainless steel caps that appear translucent from some angles. The judges admired the ingenuity: “It's really inventive. It takes a familiar vocabulary and makes something different.”
 Photo: David Sundberg/Esto
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Inside, the plan responds elegantly to the narrow lot, with more formal areas in front and informal spaces in back. “There's a real economy of means,” says Moore. “The house pulls you right up and reaches like a tree. It's a very simple solution to a client's program and the specifics of the site.”
principal in charge: Joeb Moore, AIA, Kaehler/Moore Architects; project architects: Joeb Moore, Rudi Elert, Kaehler/Moore Architects; general contractor: Dan Stasio, Stasio Inc., Ridgefield, Conn.; landscape architect: Richard Horsman, Horsman & Lester: Landscape Architects, Rye, N.Y.; interior designer: Joeb Moore, Kaehler/Moore Architects; project size: 4,800 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $350 per square foot; photographer: David Sundberg/Esto.
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 Photo: John Linden
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merit award
feinstein residence, malibu, calif.
kanner architects
los angeles
The dramatic Feinstein residence crests on a slim band of mountainside land that tapers gradually into the ocean. Built for a bachelor dentist, it's transparent, hygienic, contemporary, and fire-resistant. (The owner's previous house perished in a fire.) “The house reflects owner and site with clean lines and a fine touch,” says architect Stephen Kanner. Building projections cleverly shadow expanses of western-facing windows, permitting just a light tint and preserving their “crystalline” quality. Rectangular white tiles emphasize horizontal movement in the building and, more practically, ward off any fire-zone sparks.
The first floor backs into the hillside and Kanner took advantage of the protected
 Photo: John Linden
Random insertions of stainless steel vertical bars add interest to the bright white exterior overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
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elevation for a wall of storage. Steel framing allows for longer wall openings and glass corners, working with the single-loaded plan to ventilate the house with ocean breezes. Upper-level bedrooms bask in wraparound views. The jury admired the mix of simplicity and character, singling out especially “the beautifully detailed elevations.”
principal in charge / project architect: Stephen H. Kanner, FAIA, Kanner Architects; general contractor: JM and Co., Agoura Hills, Calif.; project size: 3,645 square feet; site size: 2.27 acres; construction cost: $400 per square foot; photographer: John Linden. Click here for product information.
