If you love MCM [mid-century modern] as much as we do we will give you a second to wipe the drool from your mouth and keep reading. The architect of this home (In Situ Studio from Raleigh, NC) did such an amazing job pulling this tired old home back to life. It takes a trusting client and a confident architect to make solid choices like this. This home is a perfect example of vision, follow-through, and restraint. This is a perfect example of why you hire an architect…
One major change the architect talks about in this renovation is extending the roof line of the main house to catch the new carport. This one decision alone laid some powerful groundwork for the rest of the project, refer to the before and after images below.
“The house now sits comfortably in it’s mid-century neighborhood, a stark alternative to the method of buy, bulldoze, build-out that currently plagues Raleigh’s first-ring suburbs.”
A visit to Neutra VDL studio and residence
Studio Field Trip:
2300 Silver Lake Boulevard Los Angeles, California is a pretty special place. The VDL Research House, designed by Richard Neutra, sits quietly off a busy winding road with cars and pedestrians alike traveling by with little knowledge of what lies beyond the tropical screening. The main entry is blurred between facade and passageway, but beyond the door sits a privately lit sitting area looking through to a private court. The sitting area is a sort of waiting area filled with friendly architecture students from Cal Poly ready to talk and walk you through this magical little place. One thing that struck us designers was that Neutra made a series of renovations and built an addition in the rear of the property years after completing the property. This holds so true to design is never done, things can always be improved and even more so after the home’s occupants have had time to reflect and understand what it means to occupy space, deflect light, open and close window treatments, and turn that chair just slightly one more time. The photos below were taken on BOTTEGA miscellanea’s group field trip to one of the birth places of Mid-Century Modern Architecture [LA]. To set up your own visit head over to Neutra VDL.
Ask an Architect: Why are you a good fit for my project?
I get to meet a lot of people, and I always remind them and myself that I might not be a good fit for your project. This hiring an architect thing is like a first date or second, or third. We are both analyzing the situation, listening, and observing. Sometimes we might not be a good fit and just like sparing your date from further pain and struggle it’s good to be honest upfront. If that is the case, we like to be as helpful as we can and recommend another architect that might suit their needs better. Or, on the flip side, this might be exactly the type of work we get excited about doing, and you (the client) are simply terrific and think we are simply terrific. Ok, maybe nobody has called you “simply terrific” yet… In short, hiring an architect is a very personal thing. On a typical project the architect will be in your life for a year, not often less, so you have to like ‘em, or at least try to. That all said, this is still a professional relationship, so we don’t really need to have too much weight held on liking and disliking, sometimes we just need to do our job in a professional and efficient manner and get you, the client, a great project at the end.
Do you have a question for an Architect? Email us and we would gladly answer it and pop it up in our next newsletter or blog post for others to read and learn from.
What’s new in the studio?
New free RESOURCES have been added to the website, take a look if you are planning your next project.
All the best,
