with A. Abou Alam, G. Castello, S. Fried, A. Karlsson-Napp, X. Li, and Z. Liu
Studio Spring 2016
Critics: Peter de Bretteville and Joeb Moore
The unique housing program for the 2016 Jim Vlock Building Project called for a single-family house with the potential of one bedroom being converted into a studio for an additional tenant.
To maintain the pattern of gaps between houses and the cluster of accessory structures towards the back of the lot, the idea was to create a compact house set back from the conventional New Haven porch line to create more intimate exterior rooms and outward views on all sides. The interior organization is based on a series of pinwheeling program blocks, where the utilities and storage become integrated as thickened walls. The slippage and space between the blocks allow for both circulation and views to the north and south. Because the structure is much smaller in scale and sited differently than the traditional houses on the street, the exterior details echo the interior organization and align more closely with the village of accessory buildings.
In a neighborhood where previous Jim Vlock Building Projects have taken a prominent presence on the street, this house is actively being concealed to create the least amount of disturbance to the street and provide privacy for its residents.
Published in Retrospecta 39