Houzz Tour: Modern Minimalism in a Multigenerational Home

Connections are paramount in an extended family's new house in Dallas. What furnishings would you choose to enhance them?

November 5, 2013
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City. I have Bachelor of Architecture and Master in Urban Planning degrees, and over ten years experience in architectural practice, split between Chicago and NYC. Currently I'm focused on writing and online pursuits. My daily blog can be found at http://archidose.blogspot.com
Houzz Contributor. I am an architect and writer living in New York City. I have Bachelor... More
Comment28
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When designing this house for a three-generation family, architect Joshua Nimmo developed a plan to enhance the relationships between family members by providing smaller personal spaces around larger family ones, indoors and out. The courtyard with pool is the most important; most of the rooms are oriented toward it through large glass walls shaded by roof overhangs. It is a classically modern one-story pavilion where connections — between family members and to nature — are paramount.

The owners are still working out the interiors, so this tour focuses on the architecture as a blank slate — before furnishings and other interior design elements will eventually complete the home. The photos nevertheless highlight the materials and surfaces that help to shape the various rooms and what happens inside them. The photos of the house at this stage also prompt us to consider how to "finish" it. I have my ideas. What are yours?

Houzz at a Glance
Who lives here: A 3-generation family
Location: Dallas
Size: 6,700 square feet; 5 bedrooms, 5 full bathrooms, 2 half bathrooms
Modern Exterior by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The house is fairly solid and introverted when seen from the street to the south. A limestone wall screens the garage on the left, and weathered steel gates provide access to the front court on the right. The floating roof beyond the gates hints at the transparency of the house.

The house is above average in size at 6,700 square feet, but remember it does serve three generations, and it is in keeping with houses in the area.
Modern Landscape by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The front court is a generous outdoor space that clearly and carefully creates a transition between the outside world and the realm of the house. One walks along the grass on the concrete hardscape to the wood-paneled front door.
Modern by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
Weathered steel doors pivot in the middle and appear to float over the concrete.
Modern Exterior by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The courtyard with pool is a very large space within view of some of the personal spaces and all of the shared family spaces. From left to right we see the master suite, then the expansive living room and finally a hint of the kitchen at the far right.

The pool, generous roof overhang and glass walls give a definite north-south directionality to the house. (We are looking east, so north is to the left and south is to the right.)
Modern Patio by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
Given the heat of Dallas, the pool is a great amenity for cooling off, and the roof overhang is important for shading the outdoor space (to make it actually usable) and the glass wall, which would otherwise admit too much afternoon sunshine to the interior. Further shading comes from the tall sycamore and other trees on the west side.
Modern Pool by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
This is my favorite view of the house, for it shows a straight shot through the interior from the outdoor space by the master suite to the front court, as well as the layering of four parallel strips: interior path, outdoor space under the roof, pool and grass. We can also see into the grandparents' suite, which lies at the end of the pool.
Modern Exterior by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
Here is a similar view, but at night, showing how the master suite juts out slightly into the footprint of the pool.
Modern Patio by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The covered outdoor area totals approximately 1,000 square feet and increases the area devoted to solar panels on the roof.
Modern Living Room by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
In this photo we are looking roughly from the kitchen toward the formal dining and living room, and at the fireplace that separates it from the informal recreation space beyond. To the right of the fireplace are glass doors leading to a small court that provides a place for family members to be alone outside.

Materials are few and minimally detailed: The fireplace is limestone, like the exterior; the floors are bleached oak; and the wood wall on the right is made with walnut veneer panels.
Modern Living Room by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
From the fireplace we get a direct view to the courtyard and pool. The west sun is streaming through the glass walls, but it is quite low under the large overhang, meaning the glass and interior have been shaded from most of the afternoon sun and the sun will soon be setting.
Modern by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
A nice detail can be found in the firewood storage on the side of the limestone hearth; this photo looks toward the walnut-covered walls we saw earlier. As the home is in Dallas, the fireplace won't be used too often, but Nimmo incorporated a geothermal HVAC system to ensure that even in the warm months, the energy use will be kept to a minimum.
Modern by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
On the other side of the fireplace (facing the small recreation rooms) is some tall, narrow storage behind darker stone doors.
Modern Kitchen by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The large kitchen has white flush cabinets and Calcutta Danby stone for the countertops and the backsplash.
Modern Home Office by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The same bright white surfaces can be found in the home office, adjacent to the master bedroom. As in the kitchen, panels extend to the ceiling to cover the whole wall and create a consistent appearance.
Modern Bathroom by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The finishes and details inside the house are resolutely modern and minimalist (note the reveal at the wall base that continues up and over the opening), but they are broken by touches like this barn door made with reclaimed wood.

Credit should be given to Rick Fontenot from Constructive General Contractors, who built these modern, minimalist details that are so much more difficult to pull off than they appear.
Modern Powder Room by NIMMO Architecture
NIMMO Architecture
The wood walls and Calcutta Danby vanity really stand out in the powder room, but I'm drawn to the narrow mirror.

The strikingly slender proportion of the mirror connects it to other parts of the house — the firewood storage, the narrow doors set into the other side of the fireplace, the walnut panels, the barn door, even the pool if we turn it vertically — creating an architectural theme throughout the house that relieves the predominantly light and flat surfaces.

If I were lucky enough to be charged with fitting out this interior, these verticals are something I'd pick up on, in addition to finding ways to strengthen the orientation of the spaces to the courtyard.

How would you work with the architecture to complete this home's interior?
Comment28
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Comments (28)
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Susan R
The details are carefully considered and the craftsmanship is superb but this house like many "modern" houses is just too austere. From the street elevation it says "Go away! Strangers not welcome." These kind of houses always feel like a museum to me, not a place that people, real people that like to do things like hobbies or cook, live, not at all a home. I know furnishings could possibly give this house a livable personality, but I doubt it because the interior designer will likely suggest more cold modern furnishings. I cannot imagine ever cooking in the kitchen for fear of making a mess. Can anyone picture children playing in the pool with inflatable toys or noodles lest they interfere with the modern conventions of the yard?
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Annette Jones
If I could afford to build a house like this, I wouldn't. It is unlikely to be the comfortable, livable family home that I feel is sadly lacking in this austere style of house and one I could never live in happily.
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Terry Kraft
Sleek and modern
   

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