The design of this house came directly from the four views it frames; a forest view to the east, a mountain view to the south, a long mountain view to the west, and a farm view to the north.
With its U-shaped plan, the house forms three walls of a courtyard with the treeline of the forest forming the fourth.
The exterior is clad in cedar processed in the Shou Sugi Ban method, which chars the wood to protect against fire and the elements and results in a rich black color and scaly texture.
Inside, the exposed framing is made of mass timber. A long wing of social, entertaining, and dining spaces occupies the long north-south volume of the house.
The north volume contains the primary suite and a study…
Connected by the entertaining wing to a guest suite to the south
To right-size the house for the couple, the four bedroom guest suite is physically separated from the rest of the spaces and acts as a standalone building.
Though connected to the primary residence by the roof (and forming the south wall of the courtyard), the suite has its own entrance and can only be accessed by leaving the main wing. This allows for different scales of inhabitation and energy use: the couple can open the guest suite when hosting or take it offline when they are not.
