Title: ////house
Location of Proejct: Lexington, Kentucky
Project Completion Date: 4/25/2022
Firm Name:

Short Description: ////house (read Skew House) is a project that derives from exploring the art of Boris Tellegen as a precedent study and as a jumping-off point into form finding, language, and conceptual design. The project explores layering to create landscapes inspired by Tellegen's wall series to craft spatial conditions based on the word skew, which was derived from his work as an operative verb of study. The initial concept was then utilized as the landscape for a spatial insertion designed to house a pair of twins and explored the connotations of being a twin that then shaped the design.

Architect's Statement: ////house (read Skew House) was designed with a set of twins inhabiting the space in mind. The idea that twins have a genetic coupling from birth and a deep familiarity and knowledge of the other, while also having their own distinct identities and views about the world. They are similar yet different, and as such, they don’t want the same things, but share some things. What is shared? What is private? How do they come together?

The twins that inhabit the ////house are rooted in creation. One utilizes sculpture, painting, and digital media to convey their message. The other utilizes the art of words to craft compelling novels about our world.

The space is set on layers of skewed planes that craft spatial cavities and geometric forms on a rectangular site. When first tasked with the design of the spatial insertion. It was decided to utilize these forms to create leveled gardens and forests that contrast the sharp lines of the geometry they sit on. Forming unique clashes of organic and synthetic.

Utilized as a shared space between twins, both artists formulate creations with inspiration from flora and fauna found in the geometric ecosystem. One in physical creations, the other in linguistic form.

As the site evolved through the iterative process, the spatial insertion used for human life was formed. The design takes on the average angle of the landscape’s four mother layers in relation to the corner, similar to the way Boris Tellegen’s works utilize geometry skewed towards the corners of the frame, before leveling off at the top. perforations are then created with long parallelograms removed from the geometry, the same method that was used for the original site. Long thin rectilinear pieces are then run perpendicular through the frame to create thin voids that allow light through from the base of the landscape. The height of each piece is randomized so that as a person moves through the space, different windows appear and disappear. This creates a sense of privacy while allowing for interesting light conditions to emerge depending on where a person is located.

Light is utilized throughout the project as a facilitator for movement. The ground plane of the house portion of the site is designed to house a plane of light that brightens up spaces and creates conditions on the floors, walls, and ceilings. It is designed to stimulate curiosity as it is never explicitly accessible to anyone and can only be viewed from certain angles. This forces the body to move throughout space to understand the shape and condition of the place they inhabit. This element is also dynamic. Depending on the context of the situation, the light in both the public and private wings can be adjusted to different levels necessary for the optimum experience. This being said, the light will be shut off regardless at night in the public wing. As the glow of the day fades and visitors leave, the private wing’s glow begins to draw those still in the house below to the private wing as the day ends.

The insertion contains a food preparation and dining space, living space, and sun room on the upper floor. On the lower floor, a gallery and library sit for public viewing of both of the twins' works. It is also designed as a much more complex and intricate structure, contrasting with the smoother and simpler geometries of the underground private space.

In the underground space, both twins are given their own bedroom. A space in which privacy reaches its peak is also located the furthest away from the center of the home. A place where both can have their own things and be in their own way. A contrast from the much more open communal living space. Here, there is space for their singular identities before, in time, they reemerge from the earth into the ecosystem of creation.