After a tornado demolished a couple’s part-time residence, Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects was hired to rebuild the former cabin, other out buildings and much of the surrounding natural landscape.
The new cabin was placed atop a stone bluff which had been cleared of trees by the tornado and overlooked the former building site. This new location takes advantage of a previously hidden dramatic vista to the north which showcases views of a creek, pastoral fields in the valley floor below and mountain ridges beyond. Locating the new structure on this spot also allowed the building’s foundation to be directly anchored into the solid stone of the bluff.
The long, narrow site, which lays out in a desirable east-west orientation for employing sustainable / energy-savings strategies, is situated between an entry drive to the south, and the cliff face of the stone bluff to the north. This orientation allows the house form to take advantage of natural light and views to the north, and captures the prevailing winds from the south by southwest for natural ventilation for most of the Spring and Fall months. By limiting the openings to the south and reducing east/west exposure, solar heat gain is also mitigated. The lower foundation base walls are clad in stone from the site that was hand selected and hewn by a local stonemason.
The Owners wanted all the spaces of the cabin to have access to this view and for the spaces to feel open to the surrounding natural landscape – but with some privacy from the entry drive as well. They often entertain and cook for family and friends, and requested an open plan so that the kitchen would be an integral part of the living space, and all spaces would have access to the outdoors. The result is a linear plan, with a large, kitchen/dining/living central area separating the master suite on the west from the office, guest bedroom and guest bath on the east.
To maintain a connection to the outdoors, all the solid wood partition walls in the cabin are 8’ high and topped with glass from that point up to the underside of the exposed wood sloped-shed roof above. This roof starts low at the south elevation, rising toward the great northern view. The master bedroom, office and second bedroom include sliding glass doors leading to screened porches, allowing the cabin to be opened to the outside almost year round. An open deck at the southeast corner sits high above the ground as the landscape slopes steeply away.
