Random House Review #5- America

House Maurer

    Allen+Maurer Architects Ltd, Canada, 2004

photo courtesy of sellmodern

This house is as if it grew out from the visible bedrocks overnight. Set in a cluster of vineyards, farms and a splendid lake view in the outskirts of Naramata, house Maurer is a perfect example of design with minimal disturbance.

The house is a set of four buildings grouped together to form around a central garden for maximised privacy and allow controlled views. The problem with some architects today is that they design straight from imagination, thus creating a priority for them. As for this architect, they let the existing landscape shape their design by using the bedrock, existing pine trees and natural slopes of the surrounding.

photo courtesy of sellmodern

The bedrock's surface was used as a natural element in the back garden, the surrounding native plants were left as is to create a more mature and undisturbed environment, pile foundations was used so that the slope was untouched, trees were not cut as it allows shade and control solar heat gain during the summer and the lake's breeze was used as a natural air conditioner. Such green.

photo courtesy of sellmodern

The architect used a modern style for the house as its simplicity and method of form follows function and does not compromise the nature and ecosystem. As a result, this house has been given four awards including the Governor General's Medal for Architecture in 2006 for its outstanding achievement in design and construction.

photo courtesy of sellmodern

photo courtesy of sellmodern

This will be the last Random House Review as I have covered all the continents of planet Earth, unless you want me to do a review of an igloo up in the Antarctic, which would be cool though. But I'll be continuing with the skyscrapers, so i got that going for me, which is nice.

Cheerio