Trinity Abbey – Ogden, Utah
Working with The Trappist Monks at Trinity Abbey, Levy Art + Architecture has conceived a plan for a retreat center that honors the legacy of the founders of this historic site. Proceeds from the center will benefit the monastery so that it may remain as an intact acreage, and as an ongoing religious presence that the monks have devoted their lives to. The retreat is planned as an extension and abstraction of the courtyard cloister at the original monastery. We planned an “open” gesture on the site, a three sided courtyard that opens to the views across the agricultural foreground. The building form in section is a similar “opening” of the closed, barrel vault form that defines the chapel. The result is an “open” and continuous curvilinear form which speaks both to the historic context and the new, secular addition.
This Master Plan for Post Ranch Inn, located in Big Sur, CA, was developed in keeping with the fundamental goals of the original design. With an emphasis on sustainability, the project seeks to preserve the natural landscape, increase on-site housing, minimize vehicular traffic, provide fresh produce and include alternative energy and water reclamation systems. The specific forms and materials of the architecture follow from this overall approach with structures closely related to their immediate natural context and planned in concert with the landscape. Sited on a west-facing ridge, the manager’s residence is inspired by views of the Pacific with the roof extending to create an overhang towards the horizon. Characterized by seamless transitions from indoors to out, the simple geometries form an intimate relationship to the topography and unify the building with nature.
Having completed his internship with Mickey Muennig as the Post Ranch, Ross was asked to work on a Master Plan for additional, planned development. The scheme includes; new guest rooms on the ridge south of the Sierra Mar Restaurant, Spa and Guest facilities around the pool, added employee housing, a central services building, alternative energy and water treatment systems. The structures are inspired by natural forms, clad in natural material and set into the landscape in keeping with the organic architecture and environmental ethos of the Inn.
This sixties vintage, split-level in San Francisco was entirely rebuilt inside the original shell, a new house inside the old. The design was an archaeological process, excavating through the existing structure to find the unrealized potential in this volume. The four parallel monolithic walls oriented from front to back are contrasted with glass and wood infill emphasizing the view. Minimalist details and the expression of structure create a synthesis between existing and new materials which complement interior spaces configured to maximize access to the panoramic skyline from multiple levels.
Publications:
• 7×7 Magazine, April 2008, pp. 98-103: “Living on the Edge” by Leilani Labong.
An Urban Infill Project
How do you add a mixed-use building to a small scale, eclectic, neighborhood district? With care and ingenuity, we have created a structure that is, at once, utilitarian and playful. This fun & funky design is the art of urban infill on a small, commercial corridor.
A simple, repetitive steel frame opens the ground-level retail floor plan for maximum potential. Above, two townhouse-style units are split along a diagonal demising wall. This creates a hierarchy of space with a minimum of means; the scale of the rooms simply changes as the diagonal moves towards and away from the orthogonal, property line perimeter. This one geometry gives life and surprise to the units, while maintaining a simple, short span construction technique.
This three-story addition to an historic property in Nob Hill in San Francisco is more a new building than a renovation. The original property was dark and narrow. By introducing a large light-well on the West side of the mass, we were able to bring natural light deep into the building, even the lower levels. A four-car garage sits at the base on the Clay Street side. On the level above there is a single level flat, its large living and dining areas open directly to a deck and south facing garden that increase the sense of space. The glass light-well forms a hallway that leads to two bedrooms. The owners unit has five bedrooms and four and half baths. The highlight is a two-story living room that looks to the south through a two story window wall that is inspired by Mondrian. This wall contrasts with the symmetry and history of the front façade, designed along the lines of early nineteenth century skyscrapers, visually ordered by neoclassical architectural concepts. This dichotomy of front to back, historical to expressive is typical of our work in San Francisco, where the street wall and historic facades are protected by the California Environmental Quality Act.
In the heart of Cole Valley, this property was the perfect location for a growing family. The house itself was small and poorly organized. We removed a small shed from the rear and had a blank palette for new architecture. The two story addition is set two risers down from the main level. This allows it to open directly to the garden and to enjoy a tall ceiling. The element that binds the project together is a central lightwell above the kitchen bar. The kitchen relates to the living room and yard across the open bar. The lightwell also allows an overlook into the main spaces from the children’s bedrooms above and includes an internal window into the master bath. The rear façade is a collage of glass and wood, activated by a pitched roof that vaults one of the upper bedrooms. In contrast the front is an historic renovation, no sign of the contemporary space or addition beyond.
Working with the historic envelope, we created a three dimensional series of spaces to unify the experience of this vertical home in San Francisco. An open stairwell brings light down four stories from the skylit penthouse and provides a heat-stack for natural ventilation and circulation. This sculptural stair travels through the void, arriving first at a bedroom level and then at the main living spaces, continuing to the roof where a large deck enjoys downtown views. A bridge joins the kitchen and dining area to the backyard creating continuity between the interior and exterior living spaces. The terraced garden acts as an outdoor room connecting the master suite to the rear yard.
• AIA San Francisco Home Tours 2009.
As a beautiful example of wine country architecture, this project is set on a 200 acre vineyard in Healdsburg, Sonoma County, California. This house is designed as an intervention to an old family home destroyed by fire. The only salvageable elements were the old gable roof and river rock hearth. Complementing the existing gable, a series of sloped and flat roof planes provide for clerestory windows that bring abundant natural light to the space. A flat, wooden ceiling over the living area continues to the exterior seamlessly connecting the surrounding porch. This long eave emphasizes the view across the vineyard to the coastal range and provides an ideal location for an integrated solar array. Bands of salvaged cedar at the base of the house support climbing wisteria and bind the house to the landscape as it rises from the rows of vines.
Ken Gutmaker, Photography
