The owners of this house loved the tree-filled property, but the…
The owners of this house loved the tree-filled property, but the original cabin-like house didnt reflect their style. For the renovation, they turned to KUBE architecture, a Washington, D.C., firm known for its modern aesthetic. The homeowners original plan was for a small master bedroom addition. However, the project evolved to a larger tower addition with a master suite and a library/living area. A deck off the tower connects the addition to the original house.
PAUL BURK
Because the site is steep, architect Janet Bloomberg says she co…
Because the site is steep, architect Janet Bloomberg says she could not add space to the back of the house. The tower provides additional square footage without disturbing any trees.
PAUL BURK
The tower is a four-story structure with a two-story library on …
The tower is a four-story structure with a two-story library on top and a master suite below. The lower level of the library has access to the wrap-around deck.
PAUL BURK
A first draft of the design called for stairs in a bump-out on t…
A first draft of the design called for stairs in a bump-out on the tower. But budget constraints dictated that the stairs remain inside the tower. The team at KUBE used a two-sided bookcase to separate the stairs.
Paul Burk
The tower has commercial windows in different shapes and sizes, …
The tower has commercial windows in different shapes and sizes, which provide a connection to the outdoors and provide the owners with differing views of the landscape as they walk up and down.
PAUL BURK
The view through this master bedroom window resembles a painting…
The view through this master bedroom window resembles a painting of a forest, architect Janet Bloomberg says.
Location: Great Falls, Va.
Contractor: MT Puskar Construction, Flint Hill, Va.
Designer: Janet Bloomberg, Mark Lawrence, Laura Sinn, Kube Architecture, Washington, D.C.
The owners of this house purchased the property because they liked the stunning forest setting. They hired Kube Architecture to enlarge the existing house, which was too small, and to update it with a contemporary design. The clients thought they just needed a small addition to expand the master bedroom, but, to fit the steep slope at the back of the house and add some interest to the original low, symmetrical structure, architect Janet Bloomberg added a four-story tower, which, she says, “picks up on the verticality of the trees.”
Windows in the tower, which contains an airy two-story library, recess into and push forward from the structure, which gives them a three-dimensional feel. “The windows start to have life instead of a flat skin,” Bloomberg says. The large windows also frame the landscape. “There are a series of shapes, so you see the landscape in a different way as you move up the tower,” she says. Instead of residential units, the large openings use more cost-effective commercial aluminum windows.
On the interior, the Kube team designed a bookcase to separate the stairs from the adjoining space, and this storage minimizes the need for furniture. Bloomberg said she focused on the bookcase and the windows in the tower to make them really special, and that the rest of the structure was a backdrop to these two elements. The judges were impressed by how consistent the design is inside and outside.
