The Gable Retreat was a small residential retreat I designed over a few days after I was inspired by a photograph I saw of the landscape shown below. I was inspired by the texture, tones, and forms to design a small little retreat in the middle of the landscape. The simple gable reflects the fluid forms of the landscape, but within the simple form, there is also a lot of rich texture that will wear over time and continue to compliment the surrounding landscape. You arrive by driving “through” the building, thereby minimizing any obstruction that blocks the view of the landscape. The building becomes more of a transition through the landscape than a destination.

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The interior spaces are flanked on either side of the driveway, encouraging the residents to get out and engage with the landscape. Views are framed from within. Large sliding doors allow the building to open out to the landscape and further breakdown any threshold to the landscape. The windows on either side and the open arid landscape allow for cross ventilation to passively cool the building during warmer months.

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I used this project as an opportunity to practice a new workflow from my sketchbook>Revit>3ds Max>Vray>Photoshop. This is a workflow I have been meaning to experiment with for a while, and it is really effective from a project workflow point of view. Revit is strong architecturally, and 3ds Max and Vray are great for visualization. Both are very dense programs, but it is a very fluid and productive workflow.