Modern small house

The house is 850 square feet on three levels. Situated at the top of an olive orchard, the exposure faces north, taking advantage of the breezes, and shade from existing forests to the south. Exploiting an existing open area with particularly hard clay soils we removed no trees.








The goal was to create an energy efficient, compact dwelling where the clients could sit in shaded areas, entertain friends with their own food production, and enjoy the wonderful views across agricultural lands.





The structure is anchored, to the steep hillside with a series of retaining walls and cascading exterior decks, each linked to an interior space. This act of at once embracing the hillside and relating inside and outside at every level is an ambitious concept for such a small house yet the one least intrusive to the natural topography.






The circulation always directs you to the views while the fenestration protects from the hot southern sun in favor of soft northern light. The main interior stair skewers the levels along the predominant central concrete wall.



Environment and structure
Nestled into a field of lavender we added a few varieties of rosemary on the north side of the maintaining this native, reductive palette both inside and out. These plantings are coordinated to be constantly humming with bees, as this is a primary food for the owner’s hives.





Poured in place concrete is the anchor both physically and aesthetically for the design. The central wall was an extremely complex pour on such a steep site. Two-inch recesses and larger openings in the concrete wall form places for sliding doors and hardware, an entry door that is flush to the wall when fully opened, and the opening for a lower level window seat all give detail, texture, and program. At the same time, these details provided challenges for the proper consolidation of the concrete. An immense scaffolding on the hillside provoked jokes about building a Roman theater, but in the end, each concrete wall was made as a continuous pour with superb quality. The builder’s expertise with varied materials and attention to detail made it possible to make this type of highly precise, finely crafted architecture.





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