Residential projects recognized

Source: residential architect online
Publication date: 2008-01-29

By Stephani L. Miller

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has announced the winners of its 2008 Honor Awards for architecture, interior architecture, and urban design. Of the 13 projects selectedfor the <i>2008 Institute Honor Awards for Architecture</i>, four are residential projects.

Delta Shelter, Mazama, Wash., by Seattle-based Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects—The 1,000-square-foot weekend cabin on stilts is located in a riparian floodplain. Its elevated design allows it to take in surrounding views and minimizes the potential of flood damage. The steel-clad exterior can be completely shuttered when vacant.

Tim Bies, Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen's Delta Shelter.

26th Street Low-Income Housing, Santa Monica, Calif., by Kanner Architects of Santa Monica—The design of the low-income family housing project invites daylight and the climate's mild breezes, while also remaining sensitive to human scale and local modernist architectural precedents.

John Edward Linden Kanner Architects' 26th Street Low-Income Housing project.

Loblolly House, Taylors Island, Md., by Philadelphia's KieranTimberlake Associates—The 1,800-square-foot modularly constructed house takes inspiration for its elevated form and materials from its coastal site and plant species, such as loblolly pines and salt-meadow cordgrass.

Peter Aaron/Esto KieranTimberlake Associates' Loblolly House.

Residence Halls Units 1 & 2 Infill Student Housing, Berkeley, Calif., by EHDD Architecture of San Francisco—This urban infill student housing project acknowledges the scale of neighborhood single-family houses and low-density apartment buildings, while encouraging community with more usable open space.

Peter Aaron/Esto EHDD's U.C.-Berkeley Residence Hall Units.

Meanwhile, four out of 10 recipients of the <i>2008 Institute Honor Awards for Interior Architecture</i> are residential projects.

Central Park South Apartment, New York City, by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects of New York City—Asymmetry and sculpted forms combine to seamlessly integrate this apartment's structural columns and plumbing lines into the design, while showcasing the owner's art, furniture, and a northern view to Central Park.

Scott Frances/Esto Gwathmey Siegel & Associates' Central Park South Apartment.

Laboratory, Omaha, Neb., by Omaha-based Randy Brown Architects—This experimental house, designed and built by the architect and hired architecture students, explores the many ways of weaving manmade elements together with natural elements, creating a vernacular structure that, in the judges' estimation, is "simultaneously natural and manmade."

Farshid Assassi/Assassi Productions Randy Brown Architects' Laboratory house.

Private Residence, Northfield, Ill., by Roszak/ADC of Evanston, Ill.—The architect's own house, an 8,200-square-foot project, fosters interaction among family members and supports their individual pursuits in different rooms. Its glass-paneled walls blur and remove borders, encouraging visual connection.

Jon Miller/Hedrich Blessing Roszak/ADC's Private Residence.

Tehama Grasshopper, San Francisco, by San Francisco's Fougeron Architecture—A three-story warehouse is transformed into an office, residence, and rooftop penthouse blending indoor and outdoor spaces. Although each space has a distinct personality and function, they cleave to the overall aesthetic through the use of industrial materials and color palette.

Richard Barnes/Richard Barnes Photography Fougeron Architecture's Tehama Grasshopper project.

One residential project was selected for the <i>2008 Institute Honor Award for Regional and Urban Design</i>.

Habitat Trails: A Low-Impact Development, Rogers, Arkansas by the University of Arkansas Community Design Center—This 17-dwelling, eco-friendly, low-impact development for Habitat for Humanity sits lightly on five acres, incorporating low-impact technologies. Units are clustered to preserve a third of the site as commonly held open space.

University of Arkansas Community Design Center The U. of A. Community Design Center's Habitat Trails low-impact development.

To view each winning project's design board with full descriptions, photos, and judges' comments in PDF format, visit www.aia.org/release_010408_honoraward.