Glass Farmhouse by Olson Kundig Architects
Olson Kundig Architects have designed the Glass Farmhouse in Northeast Oregon.
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Description from the architects:
Located in Northeast Oregon, this small house is conceived as a contemporary glass box that floats atop the surrounding wheat fields. The design of the house and the accompanying wood-frame barn responds to the local vernacular of barns and farmhouses in the Pacific Northwest while responding to the client’s deep interest in the design of Philip Johnson’s Glass House.
Facing south towards the distant mountains, the house adapts well to the cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers. In the winter, the orientation takes advantage of passive solar heat gain from the low-angled winter sun; in the summer, roof overhangs and a light shelf block the high hot summer sun from entering. Large, operable windows of high-efficiency glass provide cross-ventilation cooling, lessening the house’s need for air-conditioning.
Architect: Olson Kundig Architects
Project Team: Jim Olson, FAIA (Design Principal); Ellen Cecil, AIA LEED AP (Project Manager);
Michael Wright (Architectural Staff)
Consultants: MCE Structural Consultants, Inc. (Structural Engineering); Brian Hood Lighting (Lighting Design)
Contractor: LD Perry Inc
Photographer: Tim Bies
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Great on 11 May 2011 at 7:57 am #
I think the interior is too barren and cold.
But I do like the clever play on the architecture. It’s like slicing the barn in half and making a modern house out of it.
The Omnibus of Architecture on 11 May 2011 at 8:58 am #
Really cool design. I like everything but the materials used in the fireplace. It looks very cheap and out of place.
Dee Jay on 11 May 2011 at 9:42 am #
brilliant
perfect for the site and a nice contrast to some of the monolithic monstrosities and modernist mcmansions often featured
The Foolish Aesthete on 11 May 2011 at 5:31 pm #
Fabulous contemporary design in such contrast to its pastoral surroundings. Privacy doesn’t seem to be much of an issue either, with cows as their closest neighbor.
Chris on 11 May 2011 at 7:15 pm #
All that glass and snow, and no drapes, I’m freezing just thinking about it. Looks great, hate to pay the electricity bill though.
Luca_V on 11 May 2011 at 11:37 pm #
What a bedroom to wake up, lovely architecture
Bringing the outside in and the inside out
cityboy on 12 May 2011 at 7:18 am #
why is everything so GREY?
The Disgruntled Architect on 12 May 2011 at 9:55 am #
This is a stunning piece, and striking in the landscape. I am always drawn to designs that include glass, steel and wood. However, as beautiful as it is (including its great use of passive strategies), I cannot get past the fact that it is all glass….in the winter. No amount of solar gain will make up for the heating load on an all glass building during a cold winter, especially with high winds across a field. I am interested in how it performs in the winter…I am skeptical but totally willing to eat my words
Jim Clarke on 12 May 2011 at 12:31 pm #
Clean, pristine, serene…..a snowflake you can live in.
Max on 13 May 2011 at 1:24 pm #
I’d like to see the back of the fireplace on the kitchen side. I’d be nice if it had an opening there also. Wonder how soon the sun hits the bed in the morning? What does the bathroom look like? Is this a vacation home?
modernist on 16 May 2011 at 7:28 am #
Beautiful to look at but I’m not sure how practical it is. With all that glass and such a high ceiling it will be difficult to keep warm. The fireplace is so small it will serve little purpose other than as a light source. And those poured concrete floors will be freezing in winter. These people are ostensibly farmers so I’m guessing the bedroom doesn’t need drapes to block out the sun in the morning but for anyone else that would also be an issue.