Remodeling Guides
Architecture
Modern Architecture
Regional Modern: Northern California Architecture
A strong connection to the landscape helps define contemporary home design from the Monterey Bay to San Francisco and wine country
Our grand tour of modernist architecture in the United States continues down the West Coast into northern California. The state as a whole has been the home to some of the best and most influential residential architecture since the middle of last century. But because the climate varies greatly from north to south, its residential architecture varies as well.
Northern California is basically the top half of the state, encompassing San Francisco and the state capital Sacramento. The landscape is diverse and dramatic, marked by mountains, forests, lakes and, of course, the Pacific Ocean. One could argue that all residential architecture should be designed to frame the best aspects of its surroundings. In the case of northern California, that beauty is especially strong and certainly worthy of incorporating into a house's design.
More regional modern architecture:
Chicago | Boston | Austin | NYC | NY Metro | Oregon | Seattle | San Francisco | L.A. | Coastal L.A.
Northern California is basically the top half of the state, encompassing San Francisco and the state capital Sacramento. The landscape is diverse and dramatic, marked by mountains, forests, lakes and, of course, the Pacific Ocean. One could argue that all residential architecture should be designed to frame the best aspects of its surroundings. In the case of northern California, that beauty is especially strong and certainly worthy of incorporating into a house's design.
More regional modern architecture:
Chicago | Boston | Austin | NYC | NY Metro | Oregon | Seattle | San Francisco | L.A. | Coastal L.A.
This intriguing house near San Francisco seems to merge with its landscape. The design is an interesting mix of stucco walls, expansive glass sections, dynamic roofs and various outdoor spaces.
The fairly benign climate of Northern California means that it is common for outdoor spaces to be well-integrated into houses. This patio has expansive mountain views, but it also has a sense of enclosure that stems from the roof overhead and the adjacent walls. Dynamic, yet intimate.
Another outdoor space looks outward to the dramatic mountain landscape. Ideally, outdoor spaces should respond to both the landscapes they overlook and the functions of the adjacent rooms, so this terrace might be located next to a bedroom while the one in the previous photo would cater to the living areas of the house.
This house is perched on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean on the Monterey Peninsula, a few hours south of San Francisco.
With the Pacific Ocean as one's backyard, it's not surprising to see large windows taking in the view of the water and rocks.
The same architects crafted this house in Napa, a wine-making region just north of San Francisco. As the building steps down the landscape, it opens itself to the view. The combination of open and covered outdoor areas creates a sense of balance.
This low house is situated on the grounds of an apple orchard a little bit north of San Francisco. Poured-in-place concrete piers separate the house into bays.
The perimeter includes sheltered outdoor spaces that connect the interior spaces with the orchards beyond.
Inside is where the design really makes sense. The strongly horizontal layout of the house is more open than it appears from the outside. The low roof combined with the concrete piers frame slices of the orchard view, visually bringing the landscape inside the house.
The aptly named Ridge House overlooks a valley in Sonoma County, another wine and agricultural region north of San Francisco. The location's exposure to sun and wind is tempered by overhanging roofs that mimic how the house itself follows the ridgeline.
Decks ring the Ridge House, becoming a secondary means of circulation through the space in addition to providing numerous places for sitting and taking in the surroundings.
This house in Menlo Park, near San Francisco, is another example of relating the design to the landscape, this time by embracing it. A mature tree in the front of the house was not only preserved, but was made the focus of the U-shape plan.
The stucco and wood front is fairly closed off, with some small openings. The rear of the house, seen here, is appropriately more open.
This house west of Menlo Park takes a similar stance as the previous home. In this case, the house is split in two, resulting in an outdoor space marked by a large tree.
This house blends the two approaches I've been discussing: It arcs to embrace the backyard (which includes an immediately accessible pool) while opening itself up to the larger views beyond.
Designed by the same architect, this house melds into a small hill that angles down and across the front of the house. The bridge entry heightens the impact of this sloping landscape.
This snippet of a view, seen from inside the home, shows how even the small aperture can make a statement by framing a view north of San Francisco.
Some designs incorporate the vernacular in both form and materials, as exemplified by these final two examples. The regional modernism of Northern California may embrace flat roofs and stucco walls, but this small studio is covered in wood siding and capped by a sloping roof.
This large retreat between Monterey and San Francisco uses recycled wood siding to create a striking reinterpretation of traditional buildings while still embracing the surrounding landscape. The latter is particularly evident in the huge sliding-wall opening adjacent to the kitchen.
More regional modern architecture:
Chicago | Boston | Austin | NYC | NY Metro | Oregon | Seattle | San Francisco | L.A. | Coastal L.A.
More regional modern architecture:
Chicago | Boston | Austin | NYC | NY Metro | Oregon | Seattle | San Francisco | L.A. | Coastal L.A.