The house is a contemporary response to a changing cultural environment in the Old Town neighborhood of Chicago, which is characterized by a growing demand for monumentality, solidity and enclosure as dominant aesthetic as expressed in the architecture of the private house. As a response, we positioned the house as a massive volume between front and back garden, separating a relatively introverted street facade (large windows with translucent shades) from a very extroverted garden facade on the back of the house. The kitchen, dining room, living room are almost completely open to stimulate socialization, and connect all spaces to the back garden. The lowest level connects to the outdoor garden and houses indoor play spaces. On the second floor, three intimate bedrooms, storage-space, bathrooms and a study are arrayed around an open stair well. The third floor contains the master bedroom and bathroom arranged around a courtyard. All floors are interconnected in a continuous flow by a perforated steel stair that allows light to penetrate through the house from the courtyard on the top floor.

PERFORMANCE