Nestled in Montana's Bitterroot River Valley, the Silhouette House turns the silhouette of a traditional homesteader’s barn into a modern retreat that celebrates wood construction.
Douglas Fir constitutes the primary material 'solid' of the project. It was regionally sourced and cut, milled, and finished onsite by local tradespersons, from 'log hogs’ slicing the trunks of fallen site trees to cabinet makers. Its many characteristics -- cut, grain, finish, thickness, texture, ‘irregularity' -- are on full display. Several details warrant specific consideration:
-Exposed wood frame walls and ceilings, a wood frame structural system clad with butt-glazed glass
-The staircase is formed from 3" thick planks of Douglas Fir laced into a stacked timber supporting wall
-Building-scale screens made of live edge wood slabs shield floor-to-ceiling glass walls from solar gain during the hot summers. These screens are removed in winter to harvest solar heat gain and low-angle light
-A sliding wood shutter regulates light and thermal gain through a big ‘hay loft’ window upstairs
-A deeply cantilevered eave clad with Douglas Fir shelters an outdoor deck atop a wood plinth, providing refuge from intense southern sun
-A continuous live edge bench follows the perimeter of the outdoor terrace, promoting sprawling hospitality
-All doors are locally made of rough-sawn Douglas Fir, exhibiting the hand of the makers
-Kitchen cabinets showcase patterns of heartwood and sapwood. Solid wood plank and post construction celebrate the characteristics of checking and irregularities inherent in solid wood construction
-Wane-on live edge cladding boards make a minimalist, organic pattern in a handmade take on a rain screen
Born of the vernacular building typology, material, and methods but rendered with modern forms and details, the Silhouette House is an essay in wood construction.
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