Conclusion

All in all, Steven Holl seems to understand space in terms of dynamic interaction and interrelations. 57 He interacts with the user and interrelates the interior with the exterior, while navigating the sequence of movement through the house through overlapping perspectives. Both stimulating the conscious and the subconscious the Stretto House gives the user an all-rounded experience. The stepping gallery that flows into the rooms guides the movement of the user, opens to the landscape and relates to a stream flowing into ponds. The alternating black and white polished floor surfaces mark changing space, while the floor levels with the rippling stairs at their edges direct the user from one space to the next, flowing like water. The curved roofs with their concave surfaces draw attention to the spatial overlapping with their edges resembling arching waves, while the suppression of their structure gives emphasis to the spatial character. Deriving by a combination of his methods of employing a concept, anchoring to place and his focus on the phenomenon of spatial sequence rather than on the visual appearance of the house, all these decisions result in the “aqueous” character of the space that is ultimately felt, rather than seen.

57 Juhani Pallasma, Eyes of the Skin (Wiley Academy), 64.