Distilled Traditional

Project Details

Project Description

FROM THE AIA MARYLAND:

The Edgemoor neighborhood of Bethesda, Maryland, established in the early 1920’s, contains a diversity of architectural styles from original Colonial homes to sprawling contemporary mansions. The siting of this particular house was established to blend in to the existing fabric of the neighborhood without calling attention to itself. While acknowledging the strong architectural history of Edgemoor, this house takes traditional foms and interjects modern twists creating a tension that carries throughout the design, creating a home that feels warm and familiar but clean and crisp at the same time.  Each part of the house was designed and distilled down to its fundamental essence creating a purity of space and form that is reflected continuously throughout the house. Traditional materials of stucco, limestone and copper speak to traditional ways of building while large steel and glass windows and doors, geothermal energy, and synthetic slate roof make use of modern technologies. Limed oak floors and celebrated hardware give warmth to the interior while blackened window and door openings dissolve in the white walls blurring the boundary between interior and exterior.  By removing what is unnecessary, the house becomes all about proportion, texture and light. There is complexity in its simplicity and beauty in its restraint.