Sunrise

Conceived as a garden pavilion complimenting an existing contemporary guest house, Sunrise was designed to respond to its rugged, remote, and beautiful surroundings. The clients, a newly retired couple, have used the property and guest house as a weekend retreat for years. Admirers of our work, they were interested in collaborating with our firm to build a sleek, modern cabin in the hills above the Sonoma Wine Country.

In order to preserve the elegant quality of the desired “glass house”, the structure of the home is expressed on the exterior. Round steel columns stretch upwards across two stories to support the sunshade and thin corrugated metal roof; balancing modern lines with delicate panes of glass. Two monolithic concrete forms at the East and West facades provide both structure and storage while visually anchoring the building to the site.

The seamless transition between interior and exterior living was a primary objective, due to the client’s propensity for horticulture. Glass walls on three sides of the home allow for a strong physical and visual connection to the landscape; including the adjacent gardens and orchards and the distant Mt. Saint Helena. The interior has a pared down material palette consisting of bleached Douglas fir, white Carrarra marble, and concrete floors. With a quiet simplicity of form and a refined material palette, this home compliments the existing structures and sits in harmony with the powerful hillside landscape.

LOCATION Sonoma, California

PROJECT TEAM
Interior Designer: Studio Collins Weir
Landscape Architect: Arterra Landscape Architects
General Contractor: Cello & Maudru Construction
Lighting Design: Pritchard Peck Lighting
Structural Engineer: Strandberg Engineering
Civil Engineer: Adobe Associates Inc
Mechanical: Monterey Energy Group
Photography: Adam Rouse