Double Take: Did MoMA Drop a Mini House in the Yard?
Or maybe it's garden art or even a modernist-loving giant's step stool. Use your imagination, then get the true tale here
Becky Harris
May 6, 2013
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected."
I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia.
Houzz Contributor. Hi there! I live in a 1940s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More
The bold colors, use of space and rhythms of Piet Mondrian's work are not only a major influence on serious modernists, but they can also provide a lot of fun for the kiddos. At least architect Stephen J. Vanze of Barnes Vanze Architects thinks so. When a contractor pal from Bethesda Contracting approached him about a playhouse auction to benefit Rebuilding Together for Montgomery County, Maryland, he knew that the colorful, grid-based iconic works of Mondrian would be the right inspiration for the playhouse's design parameters.
The challenge was to design and build an interesting and extraordinary playhouse within 10 feet by 8 feet by 11 feet, prebuilt and modular, simply constructed and a source of amusement for young minds. An additional consideration for Vanze was the future — what will happen when the kids grow up and leave the nest. "We thought it should be a beautiful object that stands on its own once the children had outgrown it," he says. Here's a look at this playful backyard structure.
Project at a Glance
Size: 10 feet by 8 eight feet by 11 feet
Budget: About $25,000 to construct, donated by the contractor
Charity: Rebuilding Together is a nonprofit housing organization that provides free home repairs to low-income homeowners.
The challenge was to design and build an interesting and extraordinary playhouse within 10 feet by 8 feet by 11 feet, prebuilt and modular, simply constructed and a source of amusement for young minds. An additional consideration for Vanze was the future — what will happen when the kids grow up and leave the nest. "We thought it should be a beautiful object that stands on its own once the children had outgrown it," he says. Here's a look at this playful backyard structure.
Project at a Glance
Size: 10 feet by 8 eight feet by 11 feet
Budget: About $25,000 to construct, donated by the contractor
Charity: Rebuilding Together is a nonprofit housing organization that provides free home repairs to low-income homeowners.
The playhouse is appealing not only to children as a backyard fort for secret meetings and play, but also to adult fans of modern art.
According to the design parameters, the prefab structure had to be transportable on a flatbed truck to the auction winner's location.
A large chalkboard wall inside gives kids a way to make the space their own. I know my friends and I would have loved to play school in here. Vanze's wife, Judith Halsey, had some fun with the chalkboard herself, drawing what you see here for the photo shoot.
Vanze also included a glass panel in the floor with the idea that homeowners could place it over a small koi pond. This made us both imagine it as an ice fishing shack. Can you imagine how this structure would stand out on a frozen Minnesota lake?
Vanze also included a glass panel in the floor with the idea that homeowners could place it over a small koi pond. This made us both imagine it as an ice fishing shack. Can you imagine how this structure would stand out on a frozen Minnesota lake?
Built-ins provide space for books, toys and equipment and a cozy window seat. An upstairs loft in the cupola provides a secret fort within the playhouse.
Windows in the loft look out to a green roof and provide a clerestory for the rest of the space. These windows are operable for ventilation.
The team made sustainability a priority. The LED lights in the playhouse are all powered by a solar panel on the roof, and the rest of the roof is green. The white cladding is Azek panels, which are composed of recycled PVC.
Because Azek panels can be painted only specific colors due to the fact that they expand and contract, the bright-colored panels are medium density overlay; red, blue and yellow paint would have cracked eventually on Azek panels. Here is the structure in process — what a difference color makes!
Vanze integrated windows into the rectilinear pattern in different sizes, some just right for peeking out.
The windows also let in a lot of natural light, so during the daytime the playhouse doesn't need artificial lights.
The higher part of the ceiling is 7 feet high. I don't know about you, but the more I look at this, the more I imagine it as an adult's backyard office. I also imagine it available as a flat-packed modular structure that people could place in a large loft as art that functions as a room within a room, or within a playroom with high ceilings.
How would you use it? Let us know in the Comments!
More: The most incredible playhouse you'll ever see
The higher part of the ceiling is 7 feet high. I don't know about you, but the more I look at this, the more I imagine it as an adult's backyard office. I also imagine it available as a flat-packed modular structure that people could place in a large loft as art that functions as a room within a room, or within a playroom with high ceilings.
How would you use it? Let us know in the Comments!
More: The most incredible playhouse you'll ever see
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We essentially build Adult back yard offices along these lines. Very cool!