Steven Ehrlich Architects - 700 Palms Residence

Steven Ehrlich Architects
700 Palms Residence


Here's a house from one of my no so frequented favourites Plot Cad Box.

They feature updated on residential design every now and then, all in Italian. Great for a stare and Babelfish helps a lot for the words that aren't familiar to me in Portuguese or Spanish.

The open planned nature of this house appeals to me as does the use of rusty steel (seems to be a theme this week). Separated into two blocks a guest/garage wing and the main house have a nicely protected courtyard in between. Down the side of the main residence is the lap pool that has those large orange and red retractable shades hanging above. Vaguely reminds me of Christo and Jean Claude’s The Gates.

The bottom level has huge picture doors that open right up to let the breeze flow through. Like yesterday's post there's that dark concrete flooring featuring again. I think this time the: rug, warm wood bookshelf, the use of oranges and wood on the staircase, all lift the temperature visually. It's still pretty industrial, but that's what it's about.

The layout works wonders.
Lesson 1: A solid north facing wall that doesn't get sun doesn't need to have huge windows in it.
From there, the kitchen takes a north east position, perfect for catching sun through the eastern windows as you wait at the sink for the kettle to boil. The dining room also gets morning sun, but falls into shade during noon, peak sun, and would get setting sun through the trees at the end of the living room.
Right of the kitchen dining area are the living and library, through which you head upstairs to a mezzanine floor with what seems to be a bedroom and study at either end of a corridor running the length of the front of the house. They each have windows into the main living area, which is double height, and also out to the sun.
Passing across the glass floor you head up again to the master bedroom, and study with commanding views, perhaps out to the nearby Pacific Ocean and check out that huge walk in wardrobe!!!!

My Favourite Points:
- The solid rear wall with a fireplace in it (with a wetback, that whole wall could be warmed into a giant radiator in winter).
- The huge windows, only Arthur Casas' house in Santana de Parnaíba has a larger opening. I'll try to post this soon, along with some Isay Weinfeld.
- Lap pools rock.
- The innovative use of industrial materials that is still warm and inviting to live in.


Enjoy.

Notes on the project from Steven's site:

700 Palms Residence, Venice, CA, USA

The 700 Palms Residence, completed in 2003, addresses the freedoms and constraints of residential design in Venice. By maximizing volume, light and privacy on a narrow lot with sensitivity to scale and context, the design presents raw, honest materials appropriate to the grittiness of the Venice environment. The house dissolves the barriers between indoors and out, creating flexible spaces that take advantage of the benign climate.The house expresses a counterpoint between a sense of harmony and tranquility with flowing, dynamic spaces. Flexibility and transformation are fully realized through the use of a wood-and-steel frame structure, enclosed and shielded for privacy by a roll-down scrim hung on a skeletal steel frame.As sustainability was a major concern, the design integrates concrete flooring to absorb the sun’s warmth in the winter, operable windows and large sliding doors to facilitate natural ventilation and low-maintenance recycled materials.

Via:Plot Cad Box, Steven Ehrlich Architects