Arrival begins with sculptural mailbox at the entrance to the five-acre. An “art gateway” provides security and monitored access. The road itself curves through a natural landscape.

As few trees as possible were removed.

The Architectural Concept: Living the Landscape

Situated on a natural land ridge, the home appears to rise from the site, like a rectangular cut was made in the earth and it was pushed up from below. Red granite gravel under a roof edge and a rust-colored roof support the concept; the rusted steel roof vents suggest natural grass growing through from the ground below.

Horizontal bands of rusting steel suggest the earth strata and repeat the red color of the soil. The thin roof cantilevers eight feet to create pedestrian protection and sun control for all seasons.

To blur the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces, or “bring the outside in,” the home is wrapped in glass. Glass serves as seamless barrier to the natural world, whether the vantage point is the shower, toilet, tub, or kitchen. It’s like living outdoors in a secluded corner of the world.

A linear plan reduces the mass and allows the flexibility to build between the trees. The plan separates — and arranges in sequence — public and private spaces, with narrow glass “connector spaces” stitching them together.

At the front door, a freestanding concrete wall with acrylic rods in an changeable array of colors offers an ever-changing arrival point. The rear door features a 20 x 9-foot yellow steel frame that captures and extends visual fragments beyond the glass.

The client’s art collection has been arranged to complement the home’s scale and natural light, while the landscape and weather conditions, seen through glass, are an art experience in themselves.

The floorplan provides personal “moments in time”: views of a natural landscape and glimpses of wildlife from the bathtub or the glass shower. An unexpected rainy-day delight is the sight of a waterfall plunging into the lap pool — a sheet of water that you can view from indoors or step outside and stand under.

Interior finishes include a stained concrete slab the color of the red soil, as if the landscape moves through the structure, its rusty red color inspired by the exterior steel. Spatial warmth is created with surface and color. Black rugs define living spaces within the space, along with and sleek furniture and the grand piano.

A large, freestanding 400-gallon saltwater aquarium provides beauty and calming movement between the living room and dining room. Above the kitchen counter is a glowing, lighted opening and another reminder of the outdoors.

Arriving home by car, the owners are greeted by three striking 6’ x 6’ photographs. (The client loved the idea that even the garage is an art gallery.)  A final installation on the north provides an unexpected, pocket-sized Zen Garden made from recycled glass: It’s another “moment” created to offer peace and tranquility.