COMPLETED
2013
LOCATION
Gowanus, Brooklyn
CONCEPT
Courtyard, elevated urban garden
PROGRAM
4,000 sf interior and 1,800 sf exterior
single family residence
PUBLICATION
The New York Times, 7 January 2015
Dezeen Magazine, 22 February 2015
Dwell Magazine, February 2016

Photo Credit: Michael Moran

Roman courtyard meets Gowanus garage: selective demolition transforms a derelict garage into a courtyard building, open to the sky. An exposed steel frame stabilizes the cinder block structure and satisfies seismic code. A galvanized steel screen with operating shutters insulates the wood facade from the street and forms an enclosed smoking porch.
Sectional distinction between public and private spaces was accomplished by grouping all residential components on the second floor addition, and all common areas on the first, adjoining the open courtyard. Radiant floors, green roof, operable updraft skylights and a highly insulated envelope minimize the energy requirements of the building.

 

COMPLETED
In construction
LOCATION
Woodstock, New York
CONCEPT
Object versus field
PROGRAM
Artist’s house and studio
PUBLICATION
“In the Round, on the Flat” 
Exhibition Catalogue, Pratt Institute. 2022

Two buildings--a house and a studio--are connected by a bridge.
Areas of spatial intensity are punctuated by skylights.

3D views
rotation
oblique
volumetric

Variations on a porch
nest / running bond / amoeba

 

COMPLETED
In construction
LOCATION
Montana
CONCEPT
House of four gables
PROGRAM
Social nexus

Located at 2000m elevation on the high plains that skirt the Crazy Mountains, Big Timber occupies a pronounced topography, overlooking a creek with long views to the flatlands to the southeast and mountains to the north. The new building will serve as the central gathering space for five peripheral ranch buildings and is comprised of three rooms: the living and dining room, grouped together under one gable; and the kitchen, occupying the opposing gable.

The gables are separated by a plate glass "window", providing views from the other buildings through the new Wintergarden, the primary dining space. This glazed link also acts as a bridge between the two sides--connecting served and service space. The gabled forms respond to the orientation of the existing buildings to strengthen the geometry of the collective. Idiosyncrasies of vernacular buildings reappear in sculptural chimney forms, pronounced gables and abbreviated geometries.

The two buildings are rotated 25 degrees from one another, resulting in a sheltered courtyard between the wings. The rear of the kitchen wing is sheared in response, to expose sightlines from Big Timber to the Crazy Mountains while forming a protective wall for the kitchens outdoor cooking area.

 

PHASE
Bidding
LOCATION
New York, New York
CONCEPT
Closed-loop design
PROGRAM
Field station
COLLABORATION
Carolin Mees Architect

e/co_pod provides a secure field station for Riverside Park Conservancy employees working outdoors. e/co_pod is self-contained and fully operational, repurposed from a shipping container and built of durable steel components.  

With the protective exterior screens opened the plywood interior is revealed. Light enters from a hopper window set at desk height while opposing doors cross-ventilate e/co_pod’s interior, reducing energy usage in the more temperate times of the year. 

e/co_pod’s cantilevered roof is composed of two discrete sections: a green-blue roof and a photovoltaic array. The roof supports a wildflower intensive lawn that insulates the container from heat and collects rainwater in a 50-gallon reservoir used for irrigation. The solar array, inclined to the south for maximum efficiency, satisfies the energy requirements of climate control, lighting and computer charging of the e/co_pod users.

 

COMPLETED
In construction
LOCATION
TBD, varies
CONCEPT
Fragmented Program
PROGRAM
Artist’s house and guest room

A house is divided into three separate volumes: public, private and guest.
The volumes are reorganized according to site considerations.

Grindelwald
Skylights face Northwest, building volumes frame the sunset.
Elevated platform protects against bear and vermin.

Interlaken
Skylights face north, building volumes shade and protect against prevailing winds.
Elevated platform protects against variation in ground plane elevation.