Shadowboxx, San Juan Islands, Wash.

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Jason Schmidt

A system of lifting steel shutters protects this vacation home f… Read More A system of lifting steel shutters protects this vacation home from intruders and the elements.

Benjamin Benschneider

When stowed, the shutter panels nest beneath the roof’s genero… Read More When stowed, the shutter panels nest beneath the roof’s generous soffit.

Tim Bies

Like the shutter panels, a flat-screen television performs a sim… Read More Like the shutter panels, a flat-screen television performs a similar trick. Here it is shown in its deployed position.

Tim Bies

When not in use, the television lies flat against the ceiling.

shadowboxx, san juan islands, wash.
olson kundig architects
seattle

Like many of Tom Kundig’s machine-with-a-soul buildings, Shadowboxx features structural elements that move in surprising but functional ways. Responding to the building’s exposed shorefront site, Kundig, FAIA, devised an elegant system of awning shutters for security and weather protection. Clad in corrugated Cor-Ten steel, the three panels lift to nest under a broad, overhanging roof. Electric motors, mounted between the rafters and driving bicycle-type chains, provide the motive force. While praising the design for its practicality, the jury also called it “a rich detail, an experiential detail.”

View all 2012 RADA winners.

project credits

principal in charge: Tom Kundig, FAIA, Olson Kundig Architects; general contractor: Krekow Jennings, Seattle; structural engineer: MCE Structural Consultants, Stevensville, Mont.; electrical engineer: Bird Electric, Poulsbo, Wash.; mechanical engineer: CPI Plumbing and Heating, Mount Vernon, Wash.; interior designer: Viekman, Seattle; construction cost: Withheld; photography: Jason Schmidt, Benjamin Benschneider, and Tim Bies.