Thursday, July 22, 2010

Woodway Residence

Bohlin Cywinski Jackson is an Architecture, Planning, Interior Design firm with offices in Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania along with an office in San Francisco, California and Seattle Washington. With over 440 Regional, National, and International Awards they are not a small or unknown firm by any means. One of my favorite projects by this firm and one of my favorite examples of contemporary residential architecture is the Woodway Residence. This home was renovated from a 1950's suburban home into an amazing open floor planned home, which is meant to blur the boundary of indoor and outdoor space. It has been the winner of the 2009 Merit Award for design by AIA Northwest & Pacific Region, 2009 Grand Award in the renovation category by Residential Architect, 2008 Honor Award from AIA Seattle, and the 2008 Merit Award from AIA Sunset Western Home Awards.
      It is not difficult to see how this home could win so many awards, especially coming from a firm such as this one. What sets this home apart from others is the amazing use of natural, earthy materials to bring the home into one envelope. The lowered brushed steel roof which carries from the living room outside pulls you outdoors along with it. The concrete floors are layered outside moving you into different "rooms" of the outdoor space while keeping you interested as to what's next. This home has long narrow walkways drawing you through the different spaces of the residence with changing views and materiality and the use of glass throughout the entire home only further links the interior and exterior spaces. The pivot doors are one of the most enticing aspects of this home in my opinion. These doors feel less like a boundary and similar to a garden gate, giving the opportunity to see what's on the other side, while having the ability to limit entry into the space. What i love most about this home is the layering of space and how they treat the home like an experience, rather than a grouping of rooms and partitions.

You can see this project along with many of their other great projects on their website: http://www.bcj.com/public/home.html






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