RKD Architects

August | September 2016

From Cowboy to Contemporary

The Horse: An Icon of Western Art Grounded in Nature: Sculptor Simon Gudgeon Exploring the Interpretive World of Self-Portraiture Architecture in the West: From New Mexico to Colorado

plus:

Group f/64: Founders of Fine Art Photography Painter Jenness Cortez and the Jackson Hole Art Auction Allison Merritt of the Western Design Conference

Melding artistry and an extraordinary setting, a home by RKD Architects settles into place along Canyon Creek in Colorado

RKD Principal Jack Snow was completing the plans for a 6,000-square-foot home on a ranch in western Colorado when his clients put the brakes on the project. Despite Snow’s positive temperament, his disappointment was palpable.

“This was by far the most intriguing sculpture I’ve ever designed,” he says, describing a series of overlapping and irregular planes that formed the proposed roofline. “We were selecting finishes and ready to break ground when they concluded that their lifestyle didn’t necessitate such a large house.”

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Fortunately, Snow had plenty of experience working with his clients Valarie and

Sarah Chase Shaw

Stu Ross, and he intuitively knew the hiatus was only temporary. “Not only had they

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decided that we needed to modify the design for how they would live in this place, but

David Lauer

more importantly they realized what an extraordinary natural setting they had in their possession. They wanted to make sure they did the right thing for the land,” Snow says.

The site was located on a 500-acre ranch along Canyon Creek, just west of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Named after a national park in Stu’s childhood home of Zimbabwe, Inyanga Ranch is a picture of the quintessential Western landscape. The property sits in a lush but narrow valley surrounded by uninhabitable rugged cliffs. Near its northern boundary is an imposingly beautiful mesa and the Flat Tops Wilderness.

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Architecture RKD Architects, Inc. Builder Structural Associates

Clockwise, from bottom left: The single story home offers year-round indoor-outdoor living opportunities. | Mana’s simple forms and elemental materials — wood, stone and steel — quietly echo the strength and solidity of the surrounding landscape. | The quiet and intimate interior space of the living room is a welcomed counterpoint to the dynamic and ever-changing landscape outside. | The stone patio emerges as an extension of the home, joining the interior living spaces with the exterior.

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Snow describes Mana as one of the most serene and quiet pieces of architecture he has ever designed. Below, from left: In the home’s center, the kitchen captures the warmth and simplicity of the architecture. | Patinaed steel cladding, similar to that used on the home’s exterior, offers an interesting contrast to the zebra-striped wood cabinets and dark Neolith countertops. | Working together, the owners and the architect envisioned interior spaces that were artfully crafted yet completely relaxed. Custom furniture designed by the architect, such as the dining room table and chairs, suggests intimacy and attention to detail.

Snow and his wife, architect Sally Brainerd, founded their Vail-based firm, RKD Architects, in 1989. To them, designing a home is similar to creating a sculpture. “Real architecture,” Snow says, “starts with a blank canvas. To that canvas, you add the influences of nature — wind, views, aspect and temperature. And then you layer on a program, and you get something completely unique, different and three dimensional.”

The ranch, which bears a resemblance to the romantic imagery rendered by iconic Western artists such as Maynard Dixon, Howard Post and Clyde Aspevig, provided the ideal canvas on which to craft the two-bedroom home called Mana. Having designed several other projects for the Ross family, including a 12,000-square-foot home in Telluride, Colorado, Snow explains that the decision to downsize was the right thing to do.

“All the bells and whistles that we had designed into the previous homes simply wouldn’t fly in this rural and remote location,” he said. “Like many of my clients, Val and Stu just wanted to simplify their lives. They love Colorado, and they want to feel like they are a part of the landscape.”

While the homeowners may build another house at some point, the two-bedroom residence is perfect for now. The couple spent many hours WA

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This page, from left: A hallway, lined with a selection of the owners’ rich and varied art collection, enhances the earth tones of a patinated steel wall. | Through the windows of the master bedroom, the geometry of the surrounding landscape offers a lovely backdrop for this pristine and private getaway. | The material palette blends from one room to the next, even in this elegant bathroom.

with Snow to determine what they really needed and how

A butterfly roof, deep

the design would respond to those needs. “We wanted

overhangs and carefully

something that fit into this landscape of rocky cliffs, boul-

orchestrated fenestration capture views to the north, east

ders and native vegetation,” says Stu, adding that one of their

and south, while offering protection from the persistent

main requirements was “plenty of glass to bring the outside

sun and warm summer winds. The palette for the interior

into the home.”

and exterior is constrained and muted — a testament to

Primarily designed for summer and fall use, the

Snow’s desire to make a sculptural statement that would

2,000-square-foot home sits on a natural bench overlook-

complement, not compete with, the surrounding environ-

ing the Canyon Creek valley. Stu says this is the location he

ment. The exterior is clad in a patinated steel skin and a

and Valarie gravitated toward when they first purchased the

native Colorado stone that looks as if it was gathered right

ranch in 2012.

on the property.

“This site is really the heart of the property, and liv-

Inside, touches of Stu’s African roots are evident,

ing here makes us feel like we are a part of the ranch.

including a photo of a giant elephant nicknamed Brutus

Everywhere we look we see something enchanting,” he says.

by Snow. Its floor-to-ceiling presence contrasts with an

“The elk meander right up to the windows and look at us,

elegantly honed, free-standing granite vanity and sheet glass

and we look right back.”

in the powder room. Snow designed most of the furniture

throughout the home to be comfortable

built in 1929. Both cabins serve as guest quarters for friends

and classic; another nod to his holistic

and family, preventing the need for multiple guest rooms

view of architecture as art. And Valarie and

within the floorplan.

Stu designed the rest of the interior. “They

Like most of RKD’s work, Mana is a unique home

didn’t want to be told what they were sup-

designed for a specific program. While there are some tried-

posed to like,” Snow says.

and-true architectural elements that Snow relies upon, he

On the north side of the home, where the orthogonal and layered lines of the

is proud of the fact that his firm does not follow trends or impose a specific design approach.

kitchen and dining room meet, is a large,

“The only design style I’ll ever want to copy is my own,

rectangular swimming pool. Deep over-

and I’ll want to change it because I’ve done it before,” says

hangs bolstered by stone columns shelter

Snow. “My work tends to appeal to people who are feeling

a simple gas fireplace, creating an appeal-

adventurous and who see architecture as a form of art as well

ing and comfortable indoor-outdoor living

as a structure for habitation.”

environment that is enjoyed from early spring well into the crisp days of late

Aspen-based freelance writer and landscape architect Sarah

autumn. A simple pool deck merges with a

Chase Shaw is the author of Garden Legacy: the Residential

gently sloping lawn that meets the bosque of

Landscapes of Design Workshop and New Gardens of the

mature cottonwood trees, blending into the

American West. Her work has also appeared in national and

natural pastureland below the home.

regional publications including Aspen Sojourner, Garden

The couple renovated two existing log cabins located just up the road from the main house, including one that was

Design and Planning Magazine. Find more of her writing at www.sarahchaseshaw.com.

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