Our client is a talented and respected painter, as well as a
professor at the University Of Arkansas. She purchased and removed a
derelict house to obtain a south sloping corner lot in an older part of town on
which to build. She believes in living simply but well, and wants a house
and studio that fit her life and the way she sees it unfolding from this point.
With a friend, she worked out a diagram for the site, deciding
to put the studio on the north side of the house, which in turn occupies the
south side. There it is afforded the long view down the slope of the
neighborhood and across the valley to the adjacent ridges, which hold the
taller buildings of the university and the city square.
Her thoughts on architecture and site mesh with ours, and so we
set out to design a house that takes advantage of solar access, controls and conserves
the rain water runoff, and preserves the existing trees as well as providing
space for outdoor living. In addition, we want the house to work well
with its older neighbors, while asserting its youth and place in this century.
Most importantly, we want to make the spaces that
facilitate her life, and inspire her creativity. Our goal is generous
spaces in a small envelope.