Residential/Mixed Use
Buena Vista house A single family home nestled in the Oakland Foothills. The Plan is organized around a square divided into quadrants. the front two provide the layout for a garage and a sunken entry court. The rear two are the living quarters, forming a 50 X 25 rectangle. The first level serves as plinth for the living spaces. The criteria is for all rooms to have an access to an outdoor space and have exterior openings. Central to the planning is a vertical space at the center of the quadrant where the main entry is located and the stair connects all three floors forming a vertical axis that anchors the composition. The construction of the dwelling is to reveal a gradual lightening of the
clad
materials in the successive layering of the construction. Concrete and steel gives transition to a stick wood construction that is layered with cement boards and metal sheets of natural Zinc pre-weathered to a uniform grey patina. In contrast, the cedar highlights the articulation of the planes and the indentation of the volumes. While the exterior has a texture of its material construction, the interior is the opposite, the abstract an minimal rendition of the while surfaces recede as a background to the space that is defined. A large skylight defines the vertical articulation of the stair and its deep well provides substantial reflected light for even illumination to the spaces.
chiu lao architecture design