A Mourning Dovecote

Project Details

Project Description

This project was selected as a Merit winner in the 2024 Residential Architect Design Awards, Renovation/Adaptive Reuse category.

“The entire catalyst for the exterior form is about the birds that are naturally in that environment and wanting to support that. And so how you meld that with the actual interior space? They were able to achieve that, and it’s beautiful.” –Juror Roselie Enriquez Ledda

A 390-square-foot studio addition to the owner/architect’s own home in Sonoma, California, this project is just as much an addon for the owner’s Spinone Italiano bird-dogs and the site’s numerous mourning doves. Considering that the native bird species has experienced habitat loss in the region, and the fact that they mate and breed for life, the architect developed a structure that swoops up to form a dovecote—a shelter with nesting holes. Putting a whimsical touch on this feature, the roofing is composed of feather-shaped tiles laser cut from sheet metal. While the 12-hole dovecote is only accessible and viewable outside, a window, spanning the width between the studio’s two built-in desks and from the floor to desk height, treats the dogs to prime views of mourning doves feeding on the ground.

With sustainability at the forefront of the owner/architect’s mind, the project employs several strategies. For instance, computational modeling and analysis of natural light throughout the day and year helped determine the site, orientation, overhangs, openings, and programming of the addition while thoughtful materials and systems—such as cork flooring, radiant heating, and solar panels—were instinctively implemented. This studio space, in fact, can operate entirely off-grid using the site’s renewable energy resources.

PROJECT CREDITS:
Project Name: A Mourning Dovecote
Architect: S^A | Schwartz and Architecture
Location: Sonoma, CA

Photo Credit: Douglas Sterling