The shore line is made up of large boulders, stone cliffs and small sandy cove beaches. The house sits on a rocky promontory between two coves with sandy beaches. A single level house allows a low profile in a largely pine forest and gives the family a more accessible home as they age. The ability to find yourself in varied settings with multiple views of forest, coves and the great expansive horizon of Lake Superior drove the X strategy. The two intersecting bars of the house balance on the promontory, cantilevering toward the water and into the forest, creating captured landscapes between the bars and embedding its occupants in the varied landscape.
The region’s winter climate with its heavy lake effect snows and strong north winds blowing across the expanse of Lake Superior drove a robust structural system of exposed concrete, steel framing, and sophisticated engineering systems. Living spaces hover over the rocky point with large panels of glass connecting the family with the beach coves, forest and the expanses of Lake Superior. A restrained palette of materials, stone, blackened wood and glass, connect inside and out.
The X House is a contradiction: it is necessarily robust and protective, yet it hovers lightly above the lake and land.
Architect : Snow Kreilich Architects – https://snowkreilich.com/
Location : Marquette, Michigan, United States
Area : 3,955 square feet
Year : 2019
Photographer : Corey Gaffer Photography – http://www.gafferphotography.com/
Design team: Julie V Snow, lead designer & principal in charge; Matthew Kreilich, principal; Tyson McElvain, project architect; Carl Gauley, project designer & architect; Mary Springer, architect; Pauv Thouk, project manager
General contractor: Gregg H Seiple Construction (in collaboration with Hall Contracting)
Landscape architect: Flourishes
Structural engineer: Meyer Borgman Johnson
Consulting architect: James Larson
#foresthouse #lakehouse #housedesign