Margaret

Project Details

Project Description

Located in Austin’s lively Zilker neighborhood, this distinctive contemporary home was designed by architect, Kris White, of Dick Clark + Associates, whose intent was to create a unique modern residence that responds to its vibrant, urban context.

Inspired by Scandinavian farms and the Texas Hill Country, the home’s signature offset roof nods to the iconic farmhouse vernacular without wearing its influences on its proverbial sleeve. The quirky asymmetry is almost irreverent, as if pushing against the more cliché interpretations of the modern farmhouse trend.

The home’s interior lot heavily informed White’s design and influenced the selection and placement of the windows and doors. One of his main objectives was to create a strong connection to the backyard and really celebrate the notion of indoor/outdoor living, so he knew he needed a lot of glass. To do this, he blew out the back of the home and covered it in contemporary windows and doors from the Marvin Signature™ Collection, celebrated for its design flexibility and extensive set of options.

The centerpiece of this wall of glass is a large Ultimate Multi-Slide door. The massive door seamlessly connects the interior to the backyard oasis, invites in a lot of warm natural light, and frames beautiful sunset views. Big glass and narrow frames further dramatize the visual impact of seeing straight through the home from the front door.

“What I like to do with my windows and doors is use them to bring in beautiful light, but also to frame perspective,” White said.

So significant is this door to the overall design that the windows on the second story were spaced to match the door’s vertical mulls. When the door is closed, the window’s vertical mulls line up. They do not, however, terminate at the apex of the hemlock-lined roof ridge, where the eye expects. Instead there’s a slight offset that mirrors White’s playful asymmetric interpretation of the farmhouse silhouette.

“We thought that was really fun to play with the asymmetry.” White said.

Another distinctive element is the 14-foot cantilever that shelters the patio. The plan originally called for this feature to extend out from the exterior wall of the home, fully shielding the outdoor living room beneath from the hot Texas sun. But White opted to cut out a four-foot section near the home to allow sunlight to penetrate the lower level through the multi-slide door.

“The versatility of the windows and doors update and modernize, without going too far, the farmhouse aesthetic,” White said.