Another Japanese wonder, HOUSE kn by Kochi Architect's Studio. Beautiful [sigh]. The floor plan is very nice and the outdoor space is wonderful.
Nice treatment of parking space too. My pet peeve is nice homes ruined by ugly attached garages and bad driveways. HOUSE kn gets it right.
Via the girl in the green dress. It's a wonderful design blog, so please do click over and take a look. You'll be delighted.
Image credit - Kochi Architect's Studio site.
I have an announcement to make. I'm in love with Doris. Actually, I should point out that Doris is not a woman, Doris is a house. And she's beautiful.
Doris is the work of Bark Design, a firm with a modern bent that FHN reader Mike was kind enough to point out (thanks again, Mike!). Doris is swell gal, with lots of attractive features. In particular, I adore her flat roof, her expansive banks of windows - and she's got a carport! Oh, I really like carports.
Doris also has a wonderful floor plan with possibly the greatest kitchen in the world - made so by the overhead door out to the patio. It incorporates a screen that can be rolled down when the door is up to keep bugs out while letting breezes flow. Perfecto! My wife would love that.
Doris has a brother, Boris, and a good friend in Leroy G. Cooper.
Here are a few pics Bark shared with me of the Burbank, another model that isn't shown on their site yet. I really like the window placement on this house - it looks like it has pretty good solar orientation.
I must say, I find a whole lot to like aesthetically about Bark's homes. There's definitely a signature style with the flat roofs, carports, window arrangements and the way outdoor living spaces are approached. But what I like most is their attitude and approach to bringing modern homes to the market. I e-mailed Bark, and was very impressed with what they had to say about their direction.
"We are a team consisting of a developer, architect, and
contractor who were getting frustrated by the dismissive response to
modern design by clients and real estate professionals in our area,
so we decided to do our own thing with incredibly positive results.
We couldn't understand why people would seek out the latest design
and technology in cars, electronics, etc., but new builder/spec. home
construction seemed to be stuck in the year 1900. How many people
would go to a store for a new computer and happily walk out with a
univac the size of a refrigerator that only did addition and
subtraction? Yet people were making a similar decision every day with
a new home. We just didn't get it.
So, we design and build homes that respond and complement modern
life, are extremely efficient in terms of energy, space, livability,
constructability, and are affordable."
As I've said in recent posts, I've fallen really hard for the Case Study Houses. I like the Eames' CSH#8 a lot, yes, but I'm probably most drawn to the simplicity of the never-built CSH#4 by Ralph Rapson. It's just two simple rectangles, one for public spaces and one for private spaces, simultaneously separated and connected by an atrium. Every room is offered a view of nature, and the flow of the occupants is affected by its extreme proximity to the otherwise totally man made industrial space. Rapson named the house "The Greenbelt" after the organic space formed between the two structural boxes.
Look at this illustration of the home, featured on a cover from Architecture magazine (March '05):
I love the commuter chopper. Even in the early post-WWII days, sprawl and the disconnectedness of suburbia were on the architect's mind. I guess back then the answer seemed obvious. A Jeep, the original fashion/lifestyle vehicle, first SUV, toy of new wealth in a prospering nation, resides in the driveway ready for fun weekends. Despite modern trappings, Wifey is hanging clothes to dry on a line outside. I still remember when my grandparents, people of that generation, hung their clothes out. The last time I saw that anywhere was probably over twenty years ago. I bet it would come back into fashion today as a green alternative to the energy consumed by clothes dryers, except that subdivision association bylaws wouldn't stand for it for a minute. Carports should come back in style too. I hate garages.
As I said, the Greenbelt was never built. Was it too weird? I can't believe it was. I wonder what the story was, why it wasn't built, even when so many Case Study Homes were. I like it. It's the kind of simple yet fascinating house I go for.
You can have one now, sort of. Wieler makes prefab "Rapson Greenbelts," in many different versions, inspired by the original CSH#4, and actually designed by the man himself, and his firm, Rapson Architects. Rapson, a native Michigander like me, is alive and active as ever at age ninety-three.
Here are a couple of looks at Wieler's Rapsons:
They're not quite as groovy as the original. The greenspace is toned down considerably, turned into a regular room in the house, and the simplicity of the original is kind of gone. Still, I like them. They look very bright and clean. My favorite is the split level version, though I'd still rather live in the original CSH#4 design.
I suggest that if you build one you also invest in a very appropriate Rapson Rocker. It's almost as cool as my beloved Eames.
And definitely get yourself a "Ralph" model modern birdhouse to place outside your kitchen window. No Wieler Greenbelt would be complete without one. Even a humble sparrow deserves to live in stylish modern digs.
It's great to see the Case Study legacy live on, in any form. It's even better to see the original architect still involved in bringing great design to life. Ralph Rapson does rule!!!!
Image credits - all images from Wieler site
Today I came across a hip blog called Design Spotter, and they had a post on a small rural cabin by the Danish architecture firm Christensen & Co Arkitekter. I clicked on over and was thrilled with what I saw: fresh, modernist designs with a green streak. The houses the firm shows on its site include lots of modest homes for real people. They're really cool looking too, really sharp.
One thing that struck me was how original the floorplans are. When you're talking about modernist homes you see a lot of the same thing, and a lot of it isn't really that good. Christensen has some super layouts. They do small bedrooms too, which you probably know by now is something I'm in favor of as a way of saving space for larger rooms where you do most of the real living.
Here's what they say about their approach to environmentally friendly design:
"Sustainability is no longer a field for pioneers; it has become a legal requirement and consensus in the building process. However, visionary solutions are rarely derived from the mainstream. At CCO our ambitions far exceed the revised building regulations of 1 January 2006. Several of projects are at the absolute forefront in this field."
There's a neat post today on MoCo Loco about a design competition in Toronto tied to the city's architecture and design festival called Twenty + Change. One of the featured projects is Donald Chong's Galley House, a slim infill design that's really turning heads.
It's always fun to see what people do with tiny, overlooked lots like this one. The Galley House is small but stunning. Though it is only one room wide, and looks quite narrow from the outside, on the inside it gives the impression of overflowing with space. Here's a few more pics from Chong's site:
The Galley House is a head turner, but it doesn't overpower the neighborhood it's living in. Inside, however, it has a bold, sculptural quality. The spaces are flooded with natural light. I really like the outdoor living spaces Chong incorporated too. It's a great example of doing a lot with just a little space.
You can read a little more about Chong at this page on the IDS07 show.
Via MoCo Loco
Image credits - Donald Chong Studio site
Just in case you don't catch the comment from Matt Olson of Rosenlof/Lucas in my earlier post, take a look at rolu dsgn Flickr photo account for more examples of their modernist landscaping, and some interesting landscaping and buildings that inspire them (me too!).
Here's just one photo from the album of a second Hive Modular B-Line rolu landscaped. I love that front walk! You can see more on this house on Flickr.
Don't miss it - click over to Flickr and check it out. The guys at rolu have a great eye and are doing super work. Great stuff. Thanks for the link, Matt!
I've fallen in love with the simple, uniquely clever style of homes by Japan's Tezuka Architects. The tiny Engawa House is in my top five all time favorites. Here's another great one: the Roof House.
Every family has some unique requirement for their home. The family that commissioned the Roof House liked to sit out on their roof and eat lunch. That's what they wanted, literally, a house with a big roof deck. And why not? The site of their new home is on a beautiful hillside overlooking a small, pleasant valley. If you have a view like that why waste it?
The Tezukas delivered a home with a gently sloping roof that parallels the terrain of the site. The space is fully equipped for family living. It has an outdoor kitchen and dining table, a stove, and believe it or not, a shower. From the pictures I've seen it is not enclosed or sheltered from the neighbors' windows. Now, I know Japanese sensibilities are a little different from Americans', but I think I'd take my shower in the inside bath. Nevertheless, I love it when a home challenges convention, and this one surely does. And issues of culture and modesty aside, I'm sure anyone can enjoy lunch in the sunshine, taking in the panorama below. There's a small wall section to help shelter diners from the prevailing breezes. It looks extremely pleasant up there.
Now, I have small children, and I'm not sure I'd be totally comfortable with them playing on an open roof with no kind of rail. But again I'm inclined to ignore that in favor of appreciating the creativity of the space.
Inside there are skylights everywhere - eight of them - and lots of ladders to take you up to the roof (there's even one in the inside bathroom). Thought the family prefers lounging on the roof the inside space is great too. In typical Japanese fashion it has a small but effective kitchen, a nice open living space (minimally furnished), a small bedroom for parents and another for children, a small office, and a single bath. Simple sliding doors divide the rooms where necessary.
It looks like a really comfortable and livable family home. Very open and bright. Very relaxed.
Visit the Tezuka site for more photos of the house, or pick up the book Small Houses
Image credits - Tezuka Architects site
