Project Description
2008 Merit Award | Residential Architect Design Awards
A recent renovation of this 1980s house only highlighted its remaining architectural flaws. For phase two, the owners envisioned a bolder entryway, a larger living room, and a better connection to the backyard pool. “There was no hierarchy of space relating to the lot and the size of the house,” says Miguel Rivera, FAIA.
While changing the roofline was out of the question, the architects borrowed interior volume for the living room from a covered second-story deck and part of the second floor, adding clerestories and a wall of sliding glass doors. A travertine terrace steps down to the pool under a light-filtering aluminum trellis, banishing the deck and guardrail and opening the house to hill-country views. The renovated Great Room is used for parties, piano recitals, formal dinners, and the family’s everyday activities.
The entry was reconfigured to create a clear procession, which did not exist before. The dining room was co-opted to create a foyer of a scale suitable to the house, with a large pivot door clad in copper tubing that welcomes visitors. A natural stone path integrates the xeriscaping of the garden with the new entry.
The terrace and trellis were designed to unify the house and garden. Located five feet lower than the main level of the house, the existing pool was visually disconnected from the residence. A wooden deck with a railing at the level of the main house exacerbated the isolation of the pool and limited the flow from the house to the large garden to the east. The new design replaces the wood deck with a large travertine terrace at an intermediate level between the main house and the pool.
The terrace meets the Great Room with wide, generous steps that can serve as seating areas during large gatherings, and extends to the edge of the pool without the need for a guardrail. The terrace steps downs eastward to connect with the rest of the garden. To make the terrace usable in the long, hot Texas summers, an aluminum trellis designed to accommodate two existing trees covers the space.
The existing kitchen was also renovated, opening up toward the new Great Room and taking advantage of a double-height space for the dining area. Clean white cabinets are contrasted with Absolute Black granite countertops and stainless steel appliances, while warm oak floors match the parquet in the Great Room.