In Auvilliers, France there’s a discrete country house for those who sympathize with green fields and fresh air. Barache Residence seems to be placed on site like a wild flower that spontaneously sprouts from a fertile soil without disturbing the natural context around it. One single volume with a symmetrical pitched roof reminds the local traditional barns. Even the access from the road is quite similar to the ancient ones: an earthy path leads up to the front door that can hardly be perceived on the red cedar facade. A mysterious welcome sign is presented to all visitors that can’t anticipate the internal configuration of this modern weekend home. Continue reading →

Let me introduce you to a very special cabin built for a Navajo woman by a group of eight architecture students from the University of Colorado in the Utah desert, USA. This unusual constructive process reveals how sometimes less can be the ultimate more! Guided by a senior tutor, this courageous team of future architects rewards us with an outstanding achievement: a successful blend between traditional Navajo values and modern technologies. Continue reading →

Controversy often comes with new perspectives over some conventional ideas…Kobayashi Residence is a pure controversial project because of its unpredictable mix of inhabitable concepts: a hybrid construction that joins rustic camping with wood cabin architecture. Can you believe that?

In Chichibu Mountain, Japan lies an unbelievable example of turning a weekend retreat into something fresh and original without failing the basic purpose of sheltering a family in the middle of a deep forest. Continue reading →

If I told you about a concrete summer house in Bueno Aires, Argentina, built on a dune surrounded by pine trees, with an extensive glazing front and back facades to take in the views… Would you believe it? Casa Cher is not a fantasy… Continue reading →

In Aspen, Colorado there’s a house that shows us how to turn a rustic building into a fresh and contemporary home. La Muna Residence is a brilliant renovation of an old ski chalet, with 325sqm of constructed area, surrounded by mountains, forests and streams.

This three-story house gives us a perfect example of how to discretely blend architecture with nature: three organic materials – regional wood, stone and steel – are extensively explored in order to obtain a silent relationship between artificial and natural universes. Continue reading →

Weekend retreats are always a good opportunity to embrace innovative solutions in architecture… A small program usually stands as the main purpose behind this fine chance to achieve beauty and comfort. Pavilion Seigen works as a weekend fishing retreat that hangs quietly over the edge of a lake in Siegen, Germany.

No bedrooms, no kitchen, no living or dining room, just a place conceived exclusively for fishing activities. Kind of unusual, don’t you agree?
But let’s get in touch with this small temple that seems to be floating over the lake. Continue reading →

The concept of tradition in architecture is often related to a basic character of a society still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Preserving is always a difficult challenge for architects, especially in modern times. Difficult, but not impossible… and Summer House can prove it in a very efficient way.

This holiday cabin is positioned in Bohuslan, Sweden near the western seafront. A traditional Swedish farm house worked as the starting point to obtain a contemporary intersection between this ancient typology and the modern needs of living. Continue reading →

How would you describe your dream holiday home in a forest site? The following project may bring some clues to help you figure this out…This extraordinary weekend retreat is positioned in southern Puget Sound, along the eastern edge of the Case Inlet and was conceived as a modern comfort statement gently adorning a forested slope.

Named after its location, the Case Inlet Retreat has a total floor area of 260sq.m. full of inspirational views over the Olympic Mountains and the Puget Sound. The single floor plan is developed with the purpose of benefit from a strong relation with the surrounding trees. How? In a very simple gesture: under a flat roof with generous deep overhangs, social spaces like the living room and kitchen open towards the landscape. Continue reading →

In the northern coast of New Zealand, where tides continuously erode sandy beaches, there’s a small tower building that discreetly observes these natural movements. The type of program and distinctive characteristics of Hut on Sleds – such as the ability to move from place to place – turn this unique beach cabin into a marvelous inhabitable experience. Continue reading →