Mercer Island Modern Retreat / Garret Cord Werner Architects
This unique 4,200 square foot Mercer Island modern retreat embodies tranquility and embraces the exterior environment, including water, sky and nature.
This unique 4,200 square foot Mercer Island modern retreat embodies tranquility and embraces the exterior environment, including water, sky and nature.
The kitchen is the hub of the River Retreat with the deck slicing through the plan. The living space steps down into a light filled volume reaching out to the river.
An active young and growing family approached us with a desire to create a home that would give the ability to thoroughly enjoy this serene landscape. They wanted a “low-impact” Casco Bay Island retreat with the capability to welcome frequent visiting family and friends.
Slipping into a deep coastland shelf, this single-family home brings together multiple textures and design modes: heavy steel; perfectly-oriented wood beams; hand-installed rock walls; expansive glass.
This much loved family chalet built in the 1960’s was in need of renovation. Out went interior finishes circa 1970, a too-narrow deck and tiny windows that only gave a glimpse of the spectacular view across the hills and pond below.
Just past the airport the landscape changes from tract housing to pastoral land and small rural communities. Dotted along the drive are old agricultural outbuildings and early settler dwellings. Nostalgia for this connection between land and building was the guiding principle for our Nulla Vale House and Shed.
The house is designed as a multi-generational retreat for the whanau offering manaaki (hospitality/comfort) to the whanau for current and future generations. The house is located on longstanding whenua (land) at the foot hills of Mount Ngongotaha in Rotorua which has been in the family for 16 generations.
Located on one of the last remaining undeveloped coastal areas in California, this modern off-grid guest house resides on a wildlife preserve; exemplifying a successful balance of residential development and ecological preservation.