The Architect Is In: Beyond Prefab in a Sonoma Weekend Retreat - Remodelista
Unless otherwise noted, photography by Mathew Millman. This week, San Francisco-based architect Neal Schwartz tells us about the 1,900-square-foot house he developed in Sonoma as a prototype he could then offer his clients. “Many clients are interested in prefab options, which can be wonderful, but are not necessarily cheaper than a smart, custom solution. Simply having the flexibility to sensitively respond to the particularities of a site adds so much value to a home.”. “I wanted the home to be somewhat bullet proof because of the vacation rental and our desire to allow dogs to stay there as well,” Schwartz says. Schwartz built the house to either sell as a turn-key development project or use as a part-time vacation rental, and even with a mind to eventually using it as a permanent home for himself. Schwartz selected the materials throughout the house to be long-lasting and easy to maintain. I then picked my favorite abstract image and had it turned into wall paper by a Brooklyn based company called Flavor Paper. Schwartz admits to having a pet peeve about things on kitchen countertops. Schwartz wanted to maintain the disheveled meadow like lawn and selected a low maintenance, clumping grass; requiring very little water and mowing just once a year. Schwartz detailed the large swing door which folds back onto the wall as an abstract artwork and chose the orange color to be a counterpoint to the color and feel of the glass backsplash. The colors were inspired by a spring and autumnal palette that ties in with the seasons. Inspired by the birds which constantly fly across the upper clerestory windows in the living room, Schwartz recreated their movement with images from Andrew Zuckerman’s book, Bird. The lighting sconce, which Schwartz has shaped to mimic tree branches is a DIY project with free instructions from Lindsay Adelman’s website. Schwartz designed a quiet reading nook into the living room. The overhang which runs along the west side of the house provides a shaded exterior terrace outside the bedroom. Originally Schwartz wanted to create small, private exterior courtyards for the bathrooms, but budgetary constraints meant they did not happen. Instead the architect sandblasted the glass for privacy and the exterior is brought into the house through the shadows of the vegetation. The views, sunsets and the sun all come from the same direction. In the afternoon, breezes pick up from the vineyard side and the house is designed to maximize the ability for cross ventilation from every room. Photograph by Eddy Joaquim. “I love these photos because half the art and fun of a project is in the process of design and construction, so these images are really special and beautiful to me,” Schwartz says. The architect has created a more solid front on the road entry side for privacy. Photograph by Eddy Joaquim. An under construction photo of the front of the house. A series of diagrams illustrates how the site specific conditions shaped a simple box plan into Schwartz’s final design. The plan of Schwartz’s site sensitive house where the open plan kitchen, dining and living area serve as an anchor to the two bedrooms at either end. A view of Schwartz’s home from the vineyards.