Amid a sea of conservative cookie cutter houses in the Hamptons, Maison Plastique stands out. Way out. Owned and built by a pair of architects who were inspired to reinvent Van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion with a 60s twist, they combined influences from Matisse, Hockney & definitely un-colorphobic mexican architect Luis Barragan. While they claim it’s not a deconstructed interpretation, perhaps we just have differing views on the definition of “deconstructed”… http://bit.ly/LVNlqi
I-Beam Architecture designed this awesome residence for two “creative professionals” in New York. The architects maintained a minimal palette throughout most of the space to allow the clients’ creative impulses to really shine. The space offers huge, 500 lb sliding walls so they can rearrange the space as they see fit and left them wide, and white with lots of blank space for one of the clients to make her drawings, which she likes to create directly on the walls. Think of how amazing it’s going to look when they’ve lived there 20 years! The biggest visual pop in the space though, is the staircase railing, made from over 20,000 Lego bricks. This isn’t the first time we’ve all seen Legos being used in interiors, but I don’t think we’ll ever grow tired of them!
With a spiral stair, the air above the headroom usually just becomes deadspace. Check out how the architects, .PSLAB, put it to excellent use, not only mimicking the form of the stair, but providing a practical application as well. Too often something this visually striking winds up being what my old professor, Billy Feuerman used to (probably still does,) call “voila! architecture,” meaning something really cool looking that’s just tacked on for the sake of looking cool. We’re always excited to see “cool” being put to work.
Colorado-based firm, Robert Hawkins Architects, designed this energy-efficient home near Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It’s also completely stunning inside. The home uses reclaimed wood on the interior, siding and for the frame itself. Half of the roofs are green, using “SemperGreen” sedum mats, while the roofs with prime sun exposure were left, natural, dare I say? for solar panels. I fell in love with the consistency of the wood throughout. It’s so rich and warm and harmonious. I love it. Check it out on Great Spaces: http://bit.ly/KJB5MU
