Feinberg House

This project started out as an addition/renovation of a 1960’s era ranch. It has all of the qualities that I consider necessary for a fully integrated design, from the inside out.

The building encloses about 3,200 square feet of living area plus a lower level business office for the Owner. The program included provision of a separate entrance for the business, and an internal link through a space at the first floor which served as a conference room for the business.


The directive was to create a home with maximum transparency using large glass areas to take advantage of the beautiful wooded site and landscaping, while providing a relatively “traditional,” grounded appearance. This apparent contradiction was the force that became the genesis for the design. We developed a module for the spacing of the structural supports which accommodated the standard window module that was used. This provided two elements that were integral to the design. The first is the use of the vertical fins which are the structural supports. The second is the exact alignment of the supports and the windows throughout the building (front to rear, and end to end) which allowed for numerous opportunities to provide perfect vistas through the house, both from the exterior and the interior. The structural grid provided additional opportunities to expose portions of the beams at the interior which formed coffers at the ceilings which correspond with the windows and the interior pathways. 
We also made a point of wrapping the cedar siding around the corners, and creating large “cheek walls” which flanked, and provided a terminus for the window walls. This gives the building an appearance of strength and a certain anchorage to the land. Finally, we used hip roofs with large flying eaves to accentuate the grounding effect while providing sun and rain protection to the two story glass areas.