Hill Country House
Contemporary Living Room
The house is located on a hillside overlooking the Colorado River and mountains beyond. It is designed for a young couple with two children, and grandparents who come to visit and stay for certain period of time.
The house consists of a L shaped two-story volume connected by a one-story base. A courtyard with a reflection pool is located in the heart of the house, bringing daylight and fresh air into the surrounding rooms. The main living areas are positioned on the south end and open up for sunlight and uninterrupted views out to the mountains. Outside the dining and living rooms is a covered terrace with a fire place on one end, a place to get directly connected with natural surroundings.
Wood screens are located at along windows and the terrace facing south, the screens can move to different positions to block unwanted sun light at different time of the day. The house is mainly made of concrete with large glass windows and sliding doors that bring in daylight and permit natural ventilation.
The design intends to create a structure that people can perceive and appreciate both the “raw” nature outside the house: the mountain, the river and the trees, and also the “abstract” natural phenomena filtered through the structure, such as the reflection pool, the sound of rain water dropping into the pool, the light and shadow play by the sun penetrating through the windows, and the wind flowing through the space.