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Whitwell House
Whitwell House
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Whitwell House
Firm
Type
The Whitwell House is located in Hillsborough,
a high-income neighborhood south of San Francisco.
While the natural setting provides for a site
exclusively hidden from the neighboring houses and adjacent streets, the design
of the original house was not well integrated to its setting. Because the original site planning leveled
the hill in order to create exterior terraces that were continuous with the
house interior, more than 50% of the site was built as a concrete hardscape, now
disguised under a layer of overgrown landscaping that has rendered the
courtyard dysfunctional, rooms disconnected, and exterior views blocked.
The original house was built prior to
the current zoning code, and is therefore significantly short on the required
landscaping. By removing the terraced
hardscapes and unused driveways, the site landscape is increased by over 260%
and is closely restored to its natural hillscape and current zoning code. By consolidating the detached service room and
pool into the footprint of the house, the building plan is revised to a minimal
square footprint.
While the original U-shaped plan creates
dead-ends within the house, a circulatory loop is created between the shifted
levels of the square plan by staggering each side along the natural contour of
the site. The loop links each program,
providing ease of access and visual connection across the house. The three separate levels are unified under
the continuous concave concrete shell structure, allowing for greater spans
with a thinner and lighter roof profile.
Encircling the central courtyard, the
house is split into three levels that follow the natural contour of the
site. By “excavating” the living room
and pool adjacent to the courtyard, the house is divided into two wings with
two separate entries. The Master Wing is
composed of the essential programs for an efficient living with its master
bedroom, dining room, kitchen, and services, all unified along the entry level. The Guest Wing consists
of two guest rooms separated by a library space with a secondary guest
entrance. By “hollowing out” the dining
and library spaces in the middle of the corresponding wings, all of the public
programs of the house are linked by the central courtyard to create one
continuous communal space that is visually as well as physically connected with
one another.
Through the process of excavation, the
private quarters of the house are separated by common public space, which in
turn links the exterior landscape to the interior courtyard, melting and
dissolving the boundaries of the house into its natural surroundings.
The common rooms, located between
private quarters placed at each corner of the house, are defined by the hanging
roofs that span over them. Because the
house follow the natural topography of the hill, each communal space is located
at different levels of the site, providing a multitude of sectional
experiences.
The sectional variation between the two
sides of the house allows for an uninterrupted view from the cantilevering
master bedroom as well as a shaded poolside terrace underneath it. The poolside completes the circulatory loop
by linking the guest wing to the B1 salon as the northern side of the
consolidated square plan.
The house is thought
of as a stamp, marking an area on the context of the site without actually
reshaping it. The circulation of the
building follows the topography and completes itself by turning underneath the
cantilevering master bedroom as a loop.
The site work is minimized to the two driveways that cut in as the
master and guest wing entries.
a high-income neighborhood south of San Francisco.
While the natural setting provides for a site
exclusively hidden from the neighboring houses and adjacent streets, the design
of the original house was not well integrated to its setting. Because the original site planning leveled
the hill in order to create exterior terraces that were continuous with the
house interior, more than 50% of the site was built as a concrete hardscape, now
disguised under a layer of overgrown landscaping that has rendered the
courtyard dysfunctional, rooms disconnected, and exterior views blocked.
The original house was built prior to
the current zoning code, and is therefore significantly short on the required
landscaping. By removing the terraced
hardscapes and unused driveways, the site landscape is increased by over 260%
and is closely restored to its natural hillscape and current zoning code. By consolidating the detached service room and
pool into the footprint of the house, the building plan is revised to a minimal
square footprint.
While the original U-shaped plan creates
dead-ends within the house, a circulatory loop is created between the shifted
levels of the square plan by staggering each side along the natural contour of
the site. The loop links each program,
providing ease of access and visual connection across the house. The three separate levels are unified under
the continuous concave concrete shell structure, allowing for greater spans
with a thinner and lighter roof profile.
Encircling the central courtyard, the
house is split into three levels that follow the natural contour of the
site. By “excavating” the living room
and pool adjacent to the courtyard, the house is divided into two wings with
two separate entries. The Master Wing is
composed of the essential programs for an efficient living with its master
bedroom, dining room, kitchen, and services, all unified along the entry level. The Guest Wing consists
of two guest rooms separated by a library space with a secondary guest
entrance. By “hollowing out” the dining
and library spaces in the middle of the corresponding wings, all of the public
programs of the house are linked by the central courtyard to create one
continuous communal space that is visually as well as physically connected with
one another.
Through the process of excavation, the
private quarters of the house are separated by common public space, which in
turn links the exterior landscape to the interior courtyard, melting and
dissolving the boundaries of the house into its natural surroundings.
The common rooms, located between
private quarters placed at each corner of the house, are defined by the hanging
roofs that span over them. Because the
house follow the natural topography of the hill, each communal space is located
at different levels of the site, providing a multitude of sectional
experiences.
The sectional variation between the two
sides of the house allows for an uninterrupted view from the cantilevering
master bedroom as well as a shaded poolside terrace underneath it. The poolside completes the circulatory loop
by linking the guest wing to the B1 salon as the northern side of the
consolidated square plan.
The house is thought
of as a stamp, marking an area on the context of the site without actually
reshaping it. The circulation of the
building follows the topography and completes itself by turning underneath the
cantilevering master bedroom as a loop.
The site work is minimized to the two driveways that cut in as the
master and guest wing entries.
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