Highridge House: A New House with A Long Concrete Wall and Vertical Timbers

Completed in 2018 by Splyce Design, Highridge House is a 5200 ft2 new house located in Vernon. It is burrowed into the rolling grasslands high above Kalamalka Lake, designed for a family of five, and also tailored to the site’s native features. There is a concrete wall as an extension of the house’s main linear axis while the groupings of vertical timbers offer solar protection and privacy at the edge of the upper floor.

Plan

Designed for a family of five and tailored to the native features of the site, this house plan for this project is simple and also nuanced. It is organized along a distinct east-west circulation spine on two floors, movement through is choreographed to exposure to the views and light, and provided moments for wonder, reflection, and pause.

Structure

An extension of the main linear axis of the house is the long concrete wall that cuts into the landscape and it also defines a path and threshold to the front door of the house. Awesome views of the lake are withheld from the main entry and a subtle green-blue glimpse is revealed in the long hallway.

The ceiling parts from the house wall while the house space expands to the upper floor circulation spine and also a linear skylight. This house has a tall millwork volume that conceals the house staircase behind, providing display space and complementing an impromptu gallery/foyer space.

Rooms

Awesome double-height views come back to the house main entry and reach the top of the distant hills, animated with seasonal variation: green with new growth in the spring, blanketed with snow in the winter, and golden in summer.

In the kitchen, dining, and living zone, the play of view and light can reach its crescendo with the wide lake panorama. An almost indistinguishable boundary between inside and out is allowed by multi-track, bi-parting glass doors. Providing refuge from the hot summer sun, a deep exterior recess carves into the house’s main floor plan.

Details

Besides large overhangs on the south elevation, solar protection and privacy for the bedrooms are offered by the groupings of vertical timbers at the edge of the upper floor. These timbers are spaced according to the sun movement during the days.

Highridge House Gallery

Photographer: Sama Jim Canzian