Transformer

Cary Goodman, FAIA, lives with his family in a renovated 1950s ranch just a few miles from downtown Kansas City, Mo. Since the house had little existing character, the architect felt free to eradicate interior walls and fill the resulting open spaces with artful details that express his love of sculpture. One notable example is the custom fabricated stainless steel screen/light box/serving table/conversation piece that stands (or lies) between the kitchen and dining room. When upright, the screen conceals any untidiness in the kitchen while also highlighting a single object placed in a small niche along its bottom edge. Flipped down, the perforated screen is transformed into a serving platform sitting at the exact height of an adjacent built-in buffet. Side panels fold back in both directions for upright stability, and they swing out flat elongating the S curve along the top. Goodman incorporated the gentle curve to balance the steel’s hard edges.

On the kitchen side, near the bottom of the screen’s base, a small steel knob controls the garbage disposal. “It’s reminiscent of the ’50s cars with the choke on the dash,” chuckles Goodman.

He also got playful with other details in the house, such as structural steel columns balanced on airplane wheels. “They are obviously stationary,” says Goodman, “but they give a sense of movement and lightness.” An arched light fixture above the dining room table is made from fireproofing underlayment never intended as a finish material. Goodman explains that he “got a sample at the AIA convention and thought it was gorgeous.”