FLOATING HOUSE
The client for this project walked into the first meeting with a small model he created with paper index cards. As he is a writer in the film industry, they were the handiest material he could find. With much teasing and laughter over the sticky-tape-and-paper creation we began a wonderful design process. This initial levity also set the tone for our subsequent interactions.
The idea he presented, however, was brilliant. he proposed that we float a 3rd story addition over the top of his one-story beach bungalow, leaving the middle space open to classic indoor/outdoor California year-round living.
A seriously fun concept. We took that idea and ran with it.
The ocean is visible from the open middle deck level, as well as from the upper floors on both ends of the addition.
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The client loves steel and this translated into leaving the steel structure, the “bones” of the building, clearly visible both inside and outside. In a residence this close to the beach, corrosive salt air is an issue. Cladding the residence with rusted steel panels will minimize upkeep and make this perhaps the first time that a paper box made with index cards will turn into steel.
