This home, is situated on the edge of a forest preserve. John Ronan explores the relationship between site, material and program in a domestic environment. The site, urban on one side, falling away into a forest preserve on the other, yields a building of two characters: a low, more private “urban” façade in the front gives way to an all-glass two-story wall in the rear.

The journey down a winding road and through a pine tree forest ends at the Buisson Residence. Situated on a grass knoll and commanding views of Lake Anna in Central Virginia, the house emerges as a long, white painted brick wall with a copper clad volume cantilevered above the wall.


The primary organizational elements for this residence are two “L” shaped brick walls connected by a glass enclosed bridge. Mahogany clad walls combine with the smaller “L” to provide a service volume while glass walls combine with the larger “L” to create the primary living spaces and to provide southern and western views toward the lake.


The experience of arrival and the wall are intertwined as the wall establishes a threshold between the pine forest and views toward the lake. Entrance to the house is through the wall and into a space that divides the program of the house into public and private realms.

The Vienna Way residence by Marmol Radziner, designed for a young family, is located on a large, extensively landscaped lot in Venice, CA. Floor to ceiling glazing and outdoor living spaces fully integrate the home within the California native landscape.

Photographs by Joe Fletcher

The project is a great example of space optimization. It proves that the quality of space doesn’t need to suffer through confinement. Squeezed in a small and narrow site, space and natural light becomes precious resources, what the architect describes as ‘Architectural Values’.


The vertical circulation doubles up as a living area. Natural light is collected through skylights and carefully channeled vertically to illuminate the different spaces. Narrow areas around the edges of the houses are utilized for landscape and help to compensate for the lack of exposure to external view.

This 3300 SF Seattle residence is built on an irregularly shaped, sloping site with an outstanding scenic view, overlooking Lake Washington with diagonal views of Mt. Baker to the northeast and Mt. Rainier to the southeast.


In addition to the typical program for a three bedroom house, the owner requested a semi-detached guest suite and studio as well as a tall, covered ‘veranda’ that would allow for protected outdoor living without blocking natural light from entering the house.

This relatively small residence of 85 sq, meters (900 sq ft) is situated within a much larger 1,800 sq. meters (19,300 sq ft) site, with two existing elements serving as guidelines. The first being is a n existing line of eucalyptus aligned around the perimeter; and the second being the access street.
The client requested to leave the greater portion of the garden on one side of the house and to stay near the access street. In that way, the home and access elevation extend parallel to the street as a “great wall”, with a few open spaces, which separates from it, closing the house to the West and opening it to the garden through a veranda overlooking the Eucalyptus. The living-dining room area and bedroom open through a big window to the garden. It closes for security reasons with a sliding iron gate and a wooden one in the bedroom.

For the architectural remodeling of Knowles Residence, Coates Design opted for a profound lifestyle makeover. The aim of their design was to breath a new life into a mundane dwelling, transforming it into an architectural living space with soul and character.

“The existing house had no “heart” and no place to naturally congregate as a family or with friends. No one place in the house felt comfortable. We set out to remedy this with great momentum and ultimately, success.”

The project requirement called for a 2,000 sf addition as well as  an interior renovation to an existing house dating from the 1920s, including a new kitchen, master bedroom suite, enclosed parking, storage, and exterior patio space.

The architectural design for this residence by Houser Walker Architecture, marries a new, ‘lofty’ master suite and terraces to the rear of an existing 1920s brick bungalow. Renovations include a new kitchen, family room, and stair to existing attic rooms.