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1995-1997
Galiano Island,
British Columbia
Canada
This House was
designed and built for Todd's parents. The house was set back into
the hillside to reduce its mass in the landscape and connect the
upper and lower levels of the site. Open living spaces are defined
between the enclosed volumes of private rooms and structural elements.
The structure,
apparent in elevation and section, is made up of filled, reinforced
and plastered concrete block shear walls, a hearth of local granite,
wood posts, laminated wood beams and rough sawn douglas fir joists
and rafters. Wood
that we salvaged from an old cabin on the site was used to make
wardrobe cabinets for the guest rooms, interior doors and a bridge
to the guest bedrooms. The
west coast is dark and wet in winter and being a full time residence
it was important that the house be bright and airy. Winter's gray
light enters from above and from the sides through a lattice of
wood and glass. Bouncing off the blond wood surfaces of maple and
douglas fir the reflected light has a warm yellow glow giving the
impression that the sun is about to break
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