| The context of the project was to develop a scheme that could put to use a small steeply sloped site in Mt. Baldy, Ca with a creek that passes roughly through the middle. The lot runs longitudinally east-west with the creek running north-south through it. All foundations had to remain outside of the creek. The slope of the site gives good southern aspect and panoramic views to the south and up the hill to the north.
The program was to design a 600 square foot or less vacation house for a Japanese film-maker. The house is to be a retreat from the city and used most frequently when weather is temperate. The space really only needed to be enough for the 1 client consisting of a living/sleeping area, small kitchen and bath with minimal storage.
The student project involved producing a full set of construction documents in conjunction with our materials and methods course as well as doing all the structural calculations in conjunction with the structures course. In addition to all of that we were required to build a 1"=1'-0" scale model in a schedule and the manner of actual construction. We had to build formwork with reinforcing steel in place and pour all concrete foundations, stem walls and slabs. Then build all structural members, which I milled to size, and apply all finishes in the order they would be done in real construction. This process had to be photographed and documented in order to pass the course.
Special challenges and unusual characteristics involved the steep site and the creek listed above. Other considerations were the high fire risk area the site is located and the difficulty of getting materials and construction crews to the site.
My solution/design was to take one large idea and and follow it through to a highly detailed level of resolution. The idea was to take the simple box, which faculty jestingly encouraged, and angle it to match the slope of the site. The box slopes in 2 directions and is supported by a concrete retaining wall structure that extrudes down into the earth. The upper tilting box is offset inward on the south side, enough for structure and finishes, and hollowed out to create the useable space of the house. The large openings are oriented to the northern and southern views. The tilt of the box allows for self shading overhangs on the southern side and maximum ambient northern light through the other window. The box is now a tube that allows for the best lighting, passive solar gain and views. The concrete base that supports the tilting tube is likewise hollowed out to provide more program and a second story mezzanine. The thick concrete walls allow for thermal lag and help to moderate temperatures inside to the 55 degree earth it rests in. The large southern opening allows for passive solar gain that can be stored in the concrete mass and released by thermal lag to keep the house warm through the night. Fire considerations were dealt with by using corten steel cladding and and concrete on the exterior. Site access issues were taken into account by designing the moment frame steel structure of the upper box for off-site prefabrication and be dropped onto the concrete base via crane from the access road nearby.
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