Source: residential architect Magazine
Publication date: 2006-05-01

By residential architect staff

delta shelter, mazama, wash.

olson sundberg kundig allen architects

seattle

Tom Kundig, FAIA, likes concrete and steel because they are indestructible materials, and the fact that many of the parts used in this tiny cabin could be fabricated off site and bolted together quickly and inexpensively. But he also likes the way rusted steel blends with the trees. “People immediately react to weathered steel because they think of it as an unnatural material,” he says. “It takes awhile for them to realize it looks like bark.” The judges noticed, and commented that the cabin shows the hand of man yet is pure. “It blends into the landscape like a New England church,” one said.

Because the little square tower sits on a 100-year floodplain, Kundig raised it on stilts like a tree house, with large windows on each side so the owner can see in all four directions. One-half of each exterior wall is glazed, while the other half is clad in 16-gauge, hot-rolled steel sheets with exposed steel fasteners. When the owner closes up the house for the season, he does it literally, using a handwheel that simultaneously moves the four 10-foot-by-18-foot shutters over the glazed portion of each façade. “Like an open-and-shut case,” Kundig quips.

Photo: Benjamin Benschneider RA060501056L4.jpgView image gallery.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider. Flood-proof and virtually indestructible, this steel-and-concrete cabin perches on the floodplain of a 43-acre site. It's shielded with huge steel shutters that can be closed with a handwheel when the owners leave.

principal in charge / project architect: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects; general contractor: Tim Tanner, Seattle; project size: 1,000 square feet; site size: 43.2 acres; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Benjamin Benschneider. Click here for product information.

assembled residence, east hampton, n.y.

bates masi architects

sag harbor, n.y.

By assembling a series of prefabricated components, Paul Masi, AIA, created a well-crafted, interactive building that can adapt to the owner's lifestyle changes. When the client, a writer, decided to down-size, she wrote a letter to Masi, who had also designed her existing house next door.

Leaving out conventions such as number of bedrooms, she described her day and requested only a light, informal structure. Masi designed it as one big room, almost like a library, with secondary spaces feeding off it. The framework is simple, sturdy, and efficient, consisting of concrete foundation walls, formaldehyde-free fiberboard, dyed-concrete wall panels, pre-assembled wood screens, and a cantilevering rack system like those used in lumberyards to hold lifts of plywood. It also has adjustable brackets and arms that support the kitchen cabinetry, fireplace mantle, and the upstairs walkway and mahogany bookshelves. “The rack system provided a lot of flexibility and a lot more for your dollar,” Masi says.

Photo: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects RA060501056L7.jpgView image gallery.

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects.

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects.

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects.

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects.

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects. Paul Masi, AIA, created a straightforward, light, and informal house for his downsizing client. The entire interior skeleton is adjustable and can adapt to her changing needs.

“It's a beautiful, efficient, and well-crafted building and a really interesting place to live,” said one judge. “It looks like this was designed for somebody who really wanted that space to be what it is.”

principal in charge / project architect: Paul Masi, AIA, Bates Masi Architects; general contractor: Seacoast Construction, Bellport, N.Y., and Robert M. Padden Construction, Montauk, N.Y.; interior designer: Bates Masi Architects; project size: 1,200 square feet; site size: 0.5 acre; construction cost: $190 per square foot; photography: Harry Bates, Bates Masi Architects. Click here for product information.

solar umbrella, venice, calif.

pugh + scarpa

santa monica, calif.

Sure, this solar-powered house costs almost nothing to run. But what most impressed the judges was its thoughtful site analysis and the way the landscape slips in and out of the house. That was what Lawrence Scarpa, AIA, and Angela Brooks, AIA, intended for their home renovation and two-story addition, a former bungalow near Venice Beach. “Energy efficiency is just part of what we do,” Scarpa says. “The big concept for us was about climate and the idea of making the house a pavilion in the garden.”

Inspired by Paul Rudolph's Umbrella House, the design features a solar canopy that wraps the south wall and roof, screening out the scorching sun while providing the residence with all of its electricity. Because streets run in front and back, the designers were able to reorient the house 180 degrees, transforming the old backyard into a gracious entry courtyard that faces south. “It's a thoughtful solution to the problem of how you drop a modern building into a traditional neighborhood,” said one judge.

RA060501056L11.jpgView floor plan.

Illustration courtesy Pugh + Scarpa principals in charge / interior designers: Lawrence Scarpa, AIA, and Angela Brooks, AIA, Pugh + Scarpa; project architect: Ching Luk, Pugh + Scarpa; general contractor: Forrest Poorman, Above Board Construction, West Los Angeles, Calif.; landscape architect: Samuel Kim, SQLA, Los Angeles; project size: 1,900 square feet; site size: 0.1 acre; construction cost: $300 per square foot.

principals in charge / interior designers: Lawrence Scarpa, AIA, and Angela Brooks, AIA, Pugh + Scarpa; project architect: Ching Luk, Pugh + Scarpa; general contractor: Forrest Poorman, Above Board Construction, West Los Angeles, Calif.; landscape architect: Samuel Kim, SQLA, Los Angeles; project size: 1,900 square feet; site size: 0.1 acre; construction cost: $300 per square foot; photography: Marvin Rand. Click here for product information.