Key objectives of the project were to maximize the relationship of the house to the lake through section and massing exploration and to create an open plan around a central living space that allows visual connection to adjacent spaces while maintaining defined intimate scales within.

To compliment the site and provide balance between structure and landscape, the main living spaces were lowered to four feet above lake level, rendering a lower profile.  From the road above, the entry sequence descends to the front door where views through the house reveal the lake beyond, seemingly on the same level. The massing of the house is focused to the west to maximize view and optimize daylight, and creates two courtyards – one each at the public entry side and the private lakeside.  The tallest volume is utilized to bring privacy for outdoor living to the lakeside by shielding it from the adjoining property.

Visit the SkB Architects website - here.

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Miran says:

The apogee chair began as a search for a comfortable chair without any big manipulations, i observed people sitting on regular daily chairs and noticed they tend to move allot, they were looking for the next “temporary” comfortable position, so i though why shouldn’t the chair do some of the effort too. Searching for the balance between comfort, flexibility and support gave me the Apogee chair, a chair that suits the sitter.

The chair is made of pine wood, polyurethane rubber and fiber-glass rods.

Visit Miran Nudell’s website - here.

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‘Happily ever’ is a piece of funiture in which the dog house and chair coexist, expressing a need for intimacy between the pet owner and the pet, by sharing a common object.

Wherever you are, your dog always wants to be with you. For example, when a dog owner sits on a chair, the dog will often sit under the chair. When their pet comes near, an owner will typically pat it - a heartwarming experience for both individuals. Happily Ever is based on these kinds of behaviours.

Visit Kim Hyunjoo’s website - here.

Full description after the photos….

Photography by Remco Jansen

The Albatross Avenue House by Bayden Goddard Design

Situated on an exclusive residential street, the site adjoins extensive park to the south and absolute beachfront to the east. The residence successfully achieves its own oasis, by capturing beachfront vista and access whilst maintaining a private yet expansive pool and entertaining core. It is designed to accommodate a growing family, multiple guests and frequent entertaining.

Entry to the residence is via a recycled timber colonnade and gatehouse that grants covered access to both wings of the house. The street front facing wing accommodates guests generously with their own living area, kitchen and bathroom amenities, with a secondary stair linking to the main media, bar and games room below.

A wide glazed hallway wraps the central courtyard on both the ground and first floor giving scenic circulation past the main amenities whilst providing aesthetic flow, travelling the timber stair. Privacy is ensured and natural light is made abundant as the open tread stair is backlit entirely by opaque glazing. The centralised amenities assist easy access and circulation to ensure a well functioning home. Louvred glazing has been utilised throughout the home to control ventilation by natural breezes.

Twenty five metres of glazing capture the absolute beachfront of the property. This expansive room is catered for by the marble and timber finished kitchen with chef’s scullery and abundant cold and dry storage behind. Multiple dining and living areas are defined by furniture and finishes allowing a fully transformable space if the function so requires. Entertaining the end of the room, a split faced sandstone wall is suspended over the flickering floor level fireplace, visually playing on weight and spatial elements.

The upper level upholds all of the ground floor’s quality and design functionality, continuing play with material and space. All of the bedrooms afford beachfront orientation due to the broad width of the property, each with its own ensuite and walk in robe. The private master suite achieves an intimate aesthetic through warm textures as the sandstone wall rises from the floor below to the angled glass skylight directly above the double shower. Running the length of the eastern façade, a sandstone tiled balcony allows the family to check weather conditions and enjoy the beach aspect throughout the day, utilising indoor to outdoor spaces.

The internal and external palette of finishes of natural timbers and stone cohesively create a tropical, modern and comfortable ambience. External finishes of recycled timber, natural stone, and copper allow the property to further develop character over time. Tall mature trees matching the scale of the house are intentionally located about the property to frame the beach front, the main entrance and internal courtyard. Two palms boarder the swimming pool as the wet edge between graces the length of the timber colonnade softening polished concrete and rough stone finishes. Lighting of the landscape at night creates drama within the timber battens and palm fronds, backed by the ambient aqua glow of the swimming pool.

Visit the website of Bayden Goddard Design - here.

The chaise, chair and ottoman combine contemporary forms with traditional Japanese kimono fabric made from Nishijin silk obi. The Nishijin weaving style utilises variously dyed yarns which are woven to create complex patterns. This complicated technique, despite being both time-consuming and labor intensive, is indispensable for creating those elaborate and ornate designs required for kimono fabrics.

Visit the Kimono New York website - here.

The designer - William Gordon:

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Photography by Benjamin Benschneider

The Lobster Boat Residence by Chadbourne + Doss Architects:

This house is part of a large waterfront property that has been incorporated into a condominium development that includes 4 detached residences and 2 houseboats. Residents share waterfront access, parking, utilities, and a shared vegetable garden. While sharing costs, amenities, and responsibilities; a stronger sense of community is established.

The Lobster Boat is a metaphor for a house that is economical, purposeful, and durable. Located on a dense urban shoreline site, this residence strives to celebrate its location while providing privacy to its family. A remodel built on an existing 24’x28’ floor and basement foundation infrastructure, the constraints of site and footprint result in an efficient vertical house that reaches the maximum allowable zoning envelope to provide a variety of interior and exterior spaces. Economy is embodied in every aspect of this project including the sharing of site resources; reuse of existing structure & utilities; efficient spatial organization; and the selection of materials and systems based on low monetary, environmental, and life-cycle costs.

Visit the website of Chadbourne + Doss Architects - here.

Yiannis says:

It rocks sideways and it rocks back and forth. Monarchy also swivels.
Monarchy is designed not to be overturned, but at the same time allows
the user to escape the dullness of the ultimate stability.

Photos: Dionysis Kouris

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This year produced two winners from the UK and one from Finland.

First Place -  The Sea Defence coffee tables and wall mounted shelves by Andy Murray (UK):

Tied for 2nd place - The Swept Counter Stool by David Lewis (UK):

Tied for 2nd place - The AM Chair by Teppo Reivo (Finland):

Andy Murray, Mathew Hilton, David Lewis and Teppo Reivo:

Full description after the photos….

The Farquar Lake Residence by ALTUS Architecture

The open, permeable design of this house results from the client’s active lifestyle and desire for connectivity to the site from all spaces. Designed for a narrow, wooded, pie-shaped lakefront site, this young family sought to develop outdoor play and garden spaces while celebrating views of the lake. The concept organizes the public and private spaces into two separate wood-clad forms connected by a glass-enclosed breezeway and screen porch. The breezeway becomes an open access between the car court and lakeside yard, allowing a flow of air and activity through the center of the house toward the lake.

This indoor/outdoor connection is reinforced by the continuous bluestone paving, linking front and back spaces. The woodclad wings of the house sit on a bluestone “outcropping”, which extends the natural entry grade, grounding the house. A series of bluestone monolith steps extend from the lakeside terrace toward the shore. A folded, dark metal plane wraps the wood wings as walls and roof, creating a sculptural cap of the house. On the west edge of the house, the metal wall is punctuated by dynamic window placement, allowing light in while screening views of the neighbors. Dramatic floor to ceiling windows in the living/dining spaces and master bedroom draw in views of the site and lake, and provide north light. The house engages the site during all seasons and was constructed for $175 per sq. ft.

Visit the ALTUS Architecture + Design website - here.

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Constructed in a solid maple wood frame and finished with either a walnut wood veneer or black lacquer, the chair’s material integrity is true to Jacques Guillon’s authentic design. The seat and back are fully strung in either white or black 8-strand braided cord.

Visit Avenue Road’s website - here.

The Knitted Vase will adapt to the single beautiful rose or a bunch of wildflowers instead of the other way around. The flowers determine the shape and the flexible neck will seamlessly wrap itself around them. Just like the snug fit of a finely knitted sweater.

Photography by Scott Burrows

The Robinson Residence by BDA Architecture

This family beach house occupies a long narrow site 10m wide x 50m deep across the road from the ocean. Built to the setback controls on all boundaries it is pulled apart in the centre to provide a private north facing courtyard which is sheltered from the prevailing south easterly. The front component of the house contains a garage and entry at ground level, a living area on the first floor and a master suite on the second floor. Both the upper levels open out onto terraces overlooking the ocean. The rear component contains bedrooms and a second living area which opens into the courtyard and pool. Reduced in form to a series of planar elements dramatically cantilevered towards the ocean, this beach house makes reference to the original beachside vernacular of Miami.

Visit the BDA Architecture website - here.

Visit Arihiro Miyake’s website - here.

Photos by: Chikako Harada

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Mapping the light is produced in a limited edition by Ormond Gallery in Geneva, Switzerland.

The designer - Adrien Rovero:

Inspired by images of the Jordanian city of Petra, Sibingo sought a sensuous and overwhelming spatial effect which she achieved with her original ‘Driftwood Space’ concept. Sibingo’s ideas were manifested through a computer-generated script which manipulated the movement of lines in a continuous parallel fashion, creating line drawings which formed the basis of a plan. Her interests revolved around carving, eroding and layering. She was joined by the other three team members who each added their own input, character and flavour to enrich the project. The final design consists of twenty-eight layers of plywood which conceal an overall internal ‘Kerto’ (a renewable spruce plywood) structural system.

Photographer Nathan Willock has provided us with some photos of the pavilion:

Photography by Nathan Willock - www.nathanwillock.com

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Full description after the photos….

Photography by Alexandre Schneider

Description of the Grid House by Forte, Gimenes & Marcondes Ferraz Architects:

In an area of 53.24 hectares, only 65,000 square meters are not covered by the lush native intact forest that is permanently protected. In this area of accidented topography, where large stones are surrounded by Araucaria trees, a small valley was chosen, protected from the winds and close to the forest. This is where the natural walking paths cross: the site where people who arrive at the plot of land go to, access to the paths leading to the heart of the forest and to the top of the hill where one sees an impressive view.

Three main issues have guided the project conception: the demand for a single-story house, the wish to establish a direct relationship with the land and nature and also the need to provide privacy to the members of the family, with the main area located in one single building. Another important factor that we took into consideration was the region’s high humidity levels, which led us to suggest a house above the ground.

A structural grid in wood, with 5.5×5.5×3m modules, suspended above this nucleus for accesses, connects the existing paths and creates new ones. Thus, one may cross the bridge structure in three different ways: from above (the roof garden, which is a projection of the plot), from beneath (crossing a garden with water mirror and natural stones) and going via the middle of the house (crossing an external covered area). This grid has modules, some of which are taken up by closed environments; other ones are totally empty, allowing that the trees from the garden below cross the structure.

The program in the grid is made up of a nucleus, with washing area, social area, guest room and the owner’s apartment, and three isolate modules, with two bedrooms each, for the children. Among these, the empty modules highlight the structural continuity and enhance the empty spaces where the garden can be seen. This empty and closed spaces game provides a fragmented organization of the program, protecting the privacy of the users and, at the same time, enabling an understanding of the building set as a cohesive unit.

Suspended above the valley and merging into the hills, the house becomes the land and the land becomes the house, creating a new landscape. The built-up empty spaces, simultaneously inside and outside, allow us to see, under the grid, stones and garden the native forest, the surrounding trees and the supporting stones, where the house is immersed.

The wooden grid, supported by a set of concrete pillars, is set on the hill on two sides, as if sprouting from the ground. At this point of contact, the land is engraved by several walls made up of stones drawn from the same area. To avoid an excessive number of pillars in the 2000-square-meter structure projection, and to provide wider open views of the garden below, large trussed beams in cor-ten steel are placed at each two modules, each one of them 11 meters long. These beams, together with the landscaping, make up an important part of this work.

On the top of the highest hill, from where one has the most generous view of the mountainous horizon, lies the leisure pavilion, divided up in two blocks, with the same modulation of the main residence. The pavilion is supported by metallic beams in cor-ten steel, in a wing shape, enabling 100% of the balances in the free span, on the hills’ borders. The leisure pavilion and the residence block, with the same structural grid showing antagonistic situations of land occupation – whether in the valley or on the hill, the module establishes a clear dialog with the topography. Another 3 service pavilions with garage, housekeeper’s house, accommodations for the maids, dressing rooms, warehouses, etc. are pavilion-like constructions, with the same 5.5 X 5.5 meter module, albeit in a stone structure. Large parallel panels made out of stone anchored on the ground support the slabs. While the wooden constructions are light and ethereal, these blocks are evidence of their different function through the clear support of the large panels on the ground.

Three levels of landscape intervention have been defined. The idea is to rebuild the margins of the forest and create a transition between the open field and the closed forest by using native species, compatible with the region. At the same time, in the remainder of the open area, the park is taken up by paths with resting areas in the areas where the best views can be observed. Finally, at the sites close to the buildings there is a garden prior to the architecture work. At the top floor, which is a continuation of the plot, there is a linear water mirror that avoids the use of body protector and relates to the large water mirror located in the lower garden, around which the largest stone at the site.

Visit the website of Forte, Gimenes & Marcondes Ferraz Architects - here.

The purpose of the Design Energies exhibition, was to feature installations from a variety of designers that would get people thinking about energy efficiency and use of sustainable materials.

The installation exemplifies an architectural portion with a façade solution based on solar exposure. It consists of an insulated modular wall composed of hollow panels in eco-cement with quarry substrates, accommodating dense and dramatic-looking foliage. The façade is oriented to the south, forming a vertical garden that absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and insulates the environment it encloses from humidity. The interior of the structure is fitted with informal seating designed to beckon passers-by to stop and rest in a natural setting. The concept of sustainability is usually associated with sterile forms in which aesthetics are often overlooked. Our installation creates spectacular aesthetic effects, making sustainability both beautiful and feasible.

Visit Iosa Ghini’s website - here.

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Can Onart says:

This stool is made out of 8 layers of industrial gray felt and 2 layers of veneer. We put together the felts by using epoxy resin. The curves at the bottom helped us to give it more structurally strength.

The 1/4 scale model was inspired by Frank Gehry’s Apple Crate chair design, and is made from aluminum sheets that have been sanded to give a texture similar to steel.

Full description after the photos….

Description of the Carmel Residence by Dirk Denison Architects:

The dense and steep site of this weekend house in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California required a precise refinement of the volume of the existing building to maximize the unused breadth of the home and the views of the Pacific. A central space defined by intricate and variable screen of mahogany planks and fully folding glass walls was designed to visually connect the private spaces at the rear of the house to the central courtyard through to the seafront living room and kitchen. The low-profile steel cable structure supporting the glass ceiling of the courtyard maximizes the glass surface area to allow the sun to warm the core of the home and protect it from the strong sea winds.

The cedar siding and mahogany windows warm the exterior volumes and help to balance the scale of the house to the density of its environment, woven in and out of view through the surrounding homes and tall, native cypress trees. Throughout the interior, highly programmed and cleanly detailed mahogany cabinetry is complemented by the live-edge walnut Nakashima furniture pieces and carefully selected fabrics and finishes.

Great care was taken to open the rear of the house up to the garden at the northeast corner of the site. Lush and colorful plantings in this area come into view when climbing the cantilevered wood and glass staircase delicately attached to the exterior of the house and the main access to the solace of the mediation room on the second floor.

Visit the website of Dirk Denison Architects - here.