Modern Architecture Brings Fall Color Home
Reds and oranges aren't just for seasonal accessories — these modern home exteriors and interior designs show autumn color year-round
John Hill
October 22, 2012
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
In many parts of the world, autumn is signaled by leaves changing color before they fall to the ground. Greens give way to oranges, reds and yellows, making the passage of time noticeable and beautiful.
These autumnal hues can also be inspiration for a house's exterior, as the examples here reveal. In their embrace of bright yet warm colors, these houses add year-round color to their environments.
These autumnal hues can also be inspiration for a house's exterior, as the examples here reveal. In their embrace of bright yet warm colors, these houses add year-round color to their environments.
This project expanded a small house in rural New Jersey into a larger house that is also sustainable, meeting LEED and Energy Star criteria for homes. Here is a view of the modern portion of the house, showing the way the color wraps around the whole exterior.
Old and new are visible in terms of form (the gable-roofed old portion is in the foreground, and the flat-roofed new portion is beyond), but they are united by the red-orange color of the horizontal siding.
The entrance is highlighted by a canopy over the porch and by siding with a natural finish. The look is like the various hues of fall leaves.
Various hues can also be found in this retreat in Minnesota, where reds and yellows cover the walls below standing-seam metal roofs.
Much of the retreat's gable ends are covered in a burnt red color, but natural wood (giving a yellow appearance) is used to highlight certain windows.
These large second-floor dormers are also covered in the natural wood siding, projecting in front of the red siding below.
At first glance this house in Seattle looks gray from the stucco that covers much of it. But the wall by the balcony hints at a reddish color that livens up the gray.
Red metal panels lie between stacked windows and at other areas. The way they were inserted in the larger stucco walls gives the appearance that they are a layer beneath the gray, as if the box were cut for the windows.
Yet in other areas the red is more prevalent, extending to the window frames and mullions.
The aptly named Overlook Residence, outside Atlanta, is a modern box with a burnt-orange exterior wrapping around a gray box. An outdoor room on the right is the focus of the design, providing an area in which to bask in the view.
Here is a view of that room, which is lined with the same orange as the outer facades. This design shows the way the autumn colors of an exterior can extend into other spaces.
This modern house uses an orange volume on the ground floor like an exclamation point, anchoring the cantilevered volume above it and sitting free of the perpendicular volume next to it.
Seen from the other side, the orange volume is revealed as an outdoor cooking area that is also a backdrop for a covered terrace.
Yet the impact of this orange wall extends to the inside via views through the large sliding glass wall.
This last example takes the outside-inside relationship a step further. The gable end of this pared-down traditional form is highlighted by the rusty orange color.
The interior picks up the same color, as if the design is a series of orange gable forms between white walls and ceilings.
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