Bologna-based studio Enrico Iascone Architetti has designed the Private House in Sassuolo project.
Completed in 2009, this two-family concrete building is located in Sassuolo, a town in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy.
Bologna-based studio Enrico Iascone Architetti has designed the Private House in Sassuolo project.
Completed in 2009, this two-family concrete building is located in Sassuolo, a town in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy.
Anton House by Javier de Antón Freile:
“Relationship with the surrounding
The plot is shaped like the trunk of a long pyramid in plan, it is almost flat and it measures 2 ha. It is divided in two parts, one, on the north side, covered by a vineyard, and the other, on the lower south side, where there are both deciduous (chestnuts, walnuts) and evergreen trees (pines and Holm oaks).
The dwelling is placed in the centre of the plot, dividing it in two like a diaphragm. It is a pure concrete box opened in the middle, where the living is placed, by two large French doors (9 x 2,5 m) in both North and South faces which allow a complete transparency that visually connects the vineyard with the trees.
Composition
Two interior elements, bathrooms, installations and kitchen, divide the house in a living room at the centre and two bedrooms, one on each end.
The openings in the concrete volume form two visual axis shaped like a cross, one transversal across the living and another longitudinal that links the bedrooms.
At the same time, the pool area, intersected with the volume of the house, enhances the continuity between the inside and the outside.”
Wissioming2 Residence by Robert M. Gurney Architect:
“Located in Glen Echo, Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC this new house is sited on a sloping, wooded lot with distant views of the Potomac River. The house is positioned to preserve a majority of mature trees and is oriented towards the river views and south facing slope.
The house is organised into two volumes connected with glass bridges that span a reflecting pool which separates the volumes. Secondary volumes intersect and overlap the two larger structures rendering the composition more dynamic. Material changes in the various elements intensify the relationships. Expanses of glass open to a terrace organised around a swimming pool with two ‘infinity’ edges reinforcing the connectivity to the wooded landscape.
The interiors are painted with light. Walls constructed with slender, steel window frames composed in ‘Mondrian’ inspired patterns combine with translucent panels, wenge and white oak millwork and Pompeii Scarpaletto stone to define interior spaces. White terrazzo flooring juxtaposes the black window frames and unifies the volumes on the main floor.
This house is designed to provide spaces which are organised to integrate its inherently picturesque site in a way that the architecture becomes subservient to the landscape that surrounds it.”
Kukje Art Center_SO-IL
Saltwater Coast_NH Architecture
House at the Edge of a Forest by Hilberink Bosch Architects:
“The house, situated on a beautiful lot at the edge of the forest, consists of two different volumes: an L-shaped base on which an oblong volume balances. Together they form a sculpture which resembles a fallen tree on a pile of earth.
The public functions of the house are situated in the L-shaped base. The outside walls of the L-shape which face the public road look unapproachable and secretive. The wall is made with long, dark, robust bricks emphasizing the horizontal lines.
The interior of the house is open and light. The living space is connected with the terrace, the garden and the forest and a flood of light is entering the house. The garden facade of the house is formed by a concrete structure, the imagination of modern living within the rampart.
On this basement a timber volume is placed in which the more private rooms such as bed- and bathrooms are situated. The wooden volume resembles a fallen tree, balancing on the firm base. The steel structure of this volume has been clad with wood out of Louro Preto, an FSC certified tropical hardwood.
The wooden volume protrudes far beyond the base, forming sheltered places around the house. On one side the timber volume is firmly anchored to the ground with a glass volume. Angled and sturdy steel columns protect the glass. On the garden side, the wooden volume forms a seven meter wide overhang. This overhang provides shade and frames the terrace forming a continuum of the interior, a space between in- and outside.
All the edges of the different volumes are made without any eaves, the material dissolves in the air. This reinforces the abstract appearance of the sculpture. Just as a wanderer, caught in a thunderstorm, will seek shelter under a fallen tree, the inhabitants will find protection in this house.
The different aspects of study slowly grow into an actual building. The building becomes part of the poetry, part of the memory, it becomes meaningful. We are passionately seeking for the smartest solution for complex cases.”
Hillside House by SB Architects
“Nestled in the hills of Mill Valley, California, just across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, Hillside House has just received certification as the first LEED for Homes Platinum custom home in Marin County, and one of only a handful in Northern California.
Designed by San Francisco-based SB Architects, an international firm well-known for the design of site-sensitive resort and mixed-use projects around the world, and built by well-known green builder McDonald Construction & Development, this home is a statement of what is possible combining “high design with high sustainability.”
The four-story home – clad with beautiful, sustainable Western Red Cedar siding – is set on a steep hillside site that provides for a very vertical design with living and private zones situated on multiple separate floors. Numerous outdoor and covered terraces and balconies capitalize on stunning views of the bay and the San Francisco skyline beyond. The home’s many green aspects include:Western Red Cedar siding.
Every inch of this LEED Platinum custom home has been designed to maximize its sustainability, in direct response to the site, trees and views. Consequently, this home lives far larger than its actual footprint, but with an impact that is far less.”
Shield House by Studio H:T:
“This urban infill project juxtaposes a tall, slender curved circulation space against a rectangular living space.
The tall curved metal wall was a result of bulk plane restrictions and the need to provide privacy from the public decks of the adjacent three story triplex. This element becomes the focus of the residence both visually and experientially.
It acts as sun catcher that brings light down through the house from morning until early afternoon. At night it becomes a glowing, welcoming sail for visitors.”
Gibbon Street House by Shaun Lockyer Architects:
“The Gibbon Street House is an overtly contemporary extension to a Queenslander cottage on a typical small lot site in inner city Brisbane. The design looks to update the existing architectural vernacular on one hand while offering a challenging juxtaposition with the new built form. This contrast is clearly evident not only in the application of colour, but in material and form.
The program for the house is for a four bedroom house with two living areas and a study. The existing cottage contains the bulk of bedrooms, garage and services while the new extension contains the primary living spaces and the main bedroom all of which ‘hang’ off a large double height space, the centre piece of the house. The volume brings north light deep into the primary living areas and enhances the sense of indoor/ outdoor living as well as heightening the sense of drama within the space. A timber ‘bridge’ traverses the edge of the void and broadens at one end to accommodate an open plan study space.
The materials are masculine and dark, deliberately intended to ‘cool’ the space and focus the aspect toward the outdoor area. A large glass window into the elevated swimming pool punctuates the end of the entry sequence and forms a ‘marker’ in the landscape drawing visitors out into the garden. The dark scheme continues externally where the application of large slate tiles and polished concrete in the sunken courtyard create a sense of it being carved out of the site.
The architecture of the original cottage was able to be contemporised by virtue of pre-existing conditions on site. This has afforded a crafted timber battened under croft that conceals the cars and leads visitors into the house. This concept of enclosure not only deals with pragmatic needs but also references and reinterprets the traditional method of enclosure. The new extension is unapologetically contemporary and bold sporting large frameless panels of glass juxtaposed against the seamless timber soffit. This highly animated facade transforms by night from introverted to extroverted and illuminates the rear yard.”
Broker’s description:
“Situated just above the famed Sunset Strip in the coveted “bird streets,” this trophy estate of awe-inspiring perfect California indoor & outdoor modern lifestyle in one of the most distinctive residential properties in Los Angeles; showcasing the best, most explosive views. Flawlessly designed & crafted w/ the highest quality materials & accoutrements by renowned European designer Luca Colombo.
Finishes include baltic stone, caesarstone, echo-composite stone, oak flooring, custom aluminum doors, philippe starck fixtures, terrazzo flooring. An uncompromising design, & the finest quality construction. Huge outdoor space, comparable to 5-Star hotel w/Infinity pool, spa, stainless steel bar with full kitchen, dining trellis, & fire-pit and state of the art ipad system to control the entire home.
Dramatic two story Living room with Ipe and Cedar wood ceilings, indoor & outdoor family room with fireplace, dinning room & beautiful open and sophisticated kitchen. Opulent master suite w/sitting room, fire place, terrace, outdoor decks & luxurious baths. 2nd master suite & add’l guest bdrm suite. Media room/2nd living rm w/adjoining bar & lounge. The residence offers 5600 sf of the utmost luxury living, 5 bedrms, 6 baths, & sits on 17,066 sqft of complete privacy.”
Mexico-city-based studio Taller Héctor Barroso has designed the Guanabanos House, a two story contemporary home located in Mexico City, Mexico.
House in Iporanga by Nitsche Arquitetos Associados:
“Iporanga House is located in Iporanga a condominium for summer houses on Sao Paulo’s coast, approximately 120km east form the capital. This condo is inside a very well preserved and protected area of the original Atlantic Rainforest. The exuberance of this native forest has taken the client to demand a house that occupied the minimum as possible of the ground (lot) surface. But at the same time he wanted it to be large and comfortable, and asked for 5 suites, one for the couple, one for each of his 3 suns and one for guests, which demanded not less the 400m2 to be built.
So we decided to split the program in 3 levels: a suspended volume, wood structured for the 5 suites, so they would be on the trees´ crown/top; a plan, the concrete slab elevated from the ground to support all of the program social activities, living, dinning room the kitchen and the swimming pool; and underneath it, on ground level there is a small enclosed area for services. A small accommodation for a house keeper couple, a laundry and a deposit.
The wood frame volume is the “private” part of the house, therefore on the street side it is enclosed by opaque boards (made of wood and covered on both faces with a cement slad), glass panels along with a nylon curtain, and on the forest side, aluminum sliding doors opening the rooms to a common veranda.
This volume creates a shadow on the slab, and we used that shadow for the social area. This “middle” floor is almost an open space, protected on all sides by transparent temperate glass sliding panels, so the forest can be seen at all times. The intention was to minimize the difference between inner and outside space, making it work all as one integration area.
The structural concept of the house was inspired by small brook bridges typical from this litoraneal area. Rising from the foundation in humid soil, concrete columns support the Steel beans which support the wood frame. We tried to make the construction an assembling of parts more than an in loco process, concerning less waste at the building site, more agility and propper use of industrialized materials.”
House in Dionysos by Nikos Koukourakis & Associates:
“The main architectural thought was to design a modern house with straight lines and big openings to a flat garden. This enables the natural light to travel through every space of the house, reducing the amount of energy needed to illuminate the house. Furthermore the house was designed and built according to ‘’green architectural choices of materials used, such as:
The continuous optical dialogue between the inside and the outside is achieved by the 3.50m (each panel) sliding windows that appear in the main elevation. The house was first designed in every detail in a computer 3-D model, which allowed to have a better understanding of the building’s interaction with the environment.
The building dominates with its clean-cut lines, while its volume is split, without being dissolved, from the rich perimetric openings giving to it an airy sense via to their exposure to natural light. The big glass surfaces leave a permanently open dialogue with outside, without creating the least sense of isolation in the interior of the house.”
Private Residence by Lake | Flato Architects
I love this house for so many reasons. Especially how you can see inspiration drawn from several types of architecture, and how they were combined is special. A little MCM, Post Modernism & Minimalism, and a tiny bit of southwestern style thrown in (note the giant stucco fireplace).
Los Angeles-based studio Bertram Architects has designed the Lookout Residence.
This four bedroom, four and a half bath contemporary home is described by ben Bacal as “a jewel box in an A+ location in the City of Beverly Hills.”
Set atop a promontory with total privacy and unobstructed views from downtown to the ocean, this exclusive property is currently on sale, offered at $9.75 million.
