Bright-Minded Home December 2015

Q+A with Russ Tyson about integrating house and landscape


 

When designing a home on an old saltwater farm on 36 conservation acres with expansive views of the Atlantic Ocean, Russ Tyson of Whitten Architects used the following guidelines to work with Todd Richardson of Richardson and Associates Landscape Architects and Wright-Ryan Homes to create a home that closely integrates with the landscape.

1 PROVIDE GENEROUS ACCESS TO THE OUTDOORS
Design one-floor living that allows for protected and immediate access to the outdoors from as many rooms as possible.

2 INCLUDE CONTRASTING OUTDOOR SPACES

By juxtaposing wide and open spaces along with small and intimate ones, the experience of each is made more noticeable and enjoyable.

3 EXTEND USE OF OUTDOOR SPACES INTO SHOULDER SEASONS

Use appropriate solar orientation for added warmth, as well as windbreaks for courtyard and porches.

4 AFFORD ABUNDANT NATURAL VENTILATION

Include oversized sliding doors and windows that bring the sounds and smells of the site and ocean into the interior of the home.

5 BALANCE INDOOR AND OUTDOOR LIGHTING

Allow daylight into each room from more than one side to minimize view-altering glare and dependence on electrical lighting during the day, and include electrical lighting just outside large glass openings to reduce their mirror effect at night.

6 MERGE INTERIOR MATERIALS WITH EXTERIOR MATERIALS

Effectively blur the transition between inside and out by extending interior materials (such as wood rafters) to the outside, and exterior materials (like a stonewall) to the inside.