Hacker Architects escapes to the desert for its latest Oregon retreat
A composition of box volumes and opaque and transparent surfaces form a chic family retreat in the desert landscape of Central Oregon

‘It has this feeling that you’re in a place that’s brand new,' principle designer Corey Martin says of Central Oregon, the location for his Portland-based firm Hacker Architects’ recent residential getaway project. It’s surprising to think of a place in the middle of an American state (even if wildly different geographically to Portland, all lush and green and rolling to the west of the Cascades, dryer and flatter to the east) as ‘brand new'; though comparatively, and geologically, it is, but that’s part of the magic of the designer’s architectural approach. Rather than start with the basic brief – four bedrooms, for a couple and their extended family – Martin and his team, Nic Smith and Jeff Ernst, started with the landscape – and its ideas.
‘The building itself tries to edit and frame and take the experience of the landscape visually apart when you’re inside it,' he continues. The form starts with a basic box whose elements become articulated and separated and reunited with long swaths of cedar siding. These opaque surfaces work in concert with massive open walls of windows divided only by the thinnest of frames, and smaller apertures, all of which stack together to create a rhythm of constant enclosure and reveal.
Both exterior and interior walls are made out of cedar, so as to promote both a visual continuity and a sense of tactility, and the only other colors are white and black. The architecture is in service of looking – and in particular, looking outward. ‘You’re getting forced to look at the sky, and you’re getting layering that lets you consider all these pieces of the landscape at different times, at different qualities of light,' Martin says.
‘It’s got this freshness in quality of light and smells,' Martin continues, describing the relative youth of the local volcanoes. And that's the conceptual heart of this project. It’s not about finding what you thought you were looking for; it’s about what you end up seeing.
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Sandbox Films’ New York office nods to the Golden Age of Hollywood with a film noir setting
Sandbox Films, a Manhattan-based production company, gets an interior overhaul inspired by European art-deco cinema
By Tianna Williams Published
-
This 1970s brutalist house in Belgium has a new life as a designer’s home and studio
1970s brutalist house Villa Stuyven is now home to creative couple Bram Kerkhofs and Lore Baeyens, providing a concrete-lined backdrop to a life of design and collaboration
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The sunset lamp by Mandalaki adds an ethereal glow to any room
Halo Edition, the original sunset light by Mandalaki, celebrates its anniversary with an exclusive limited collection
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Learnings from the Architecture Sarasota MOD Weekend 2023
Architecture Sarasota MOD Weekend 2023 highlights local midcentury architects’ timeless responses to sustainability and a site-specific approach
By Angella d'Avignon Published
-
Roy Lichtenstein studio is now home to the Whitney Museum’s Independent Study Program
The 1912 Roy Lichtenstein studio has been updated by Johnston Marklee to include individual artist studios, a seminar room and other facilities
By Pei-Ru Keh Published
-
This artist’s studio on Long Island is carefully placed amidst a wooded site
Architects Worrell Yeung designed the Springs artist's studio to blend into the trees, with leafy views from the lofty atelier
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Lever House in New York gets a 21st-century makeover
Some 70 years after its completion, SOM returns to Lever House in New York, bringing the high-rise landmark to the 21st century
By Diana Budds Published
-
FRPO’s Oregon house explores modern materials and a circular plan
This single-storey Oregon house in the Pacific Northwest offers a radical new take on suburban living
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Camino House is a revived 1960s home in San Francisco’s Silicon Valley
Lindsay Gerber’s tactful refurbishment of Camino House brings a quiet glamour to the wood-panelled 1960s home in San Francisco’s Silicon Valley
By Shonquis Moreno Published
-
Chicago Architecture Biennial 2023 launches diverse survey of the built environment
The Chicago Architecture Biennial 2023 opens at the Chicago Cultural Centre and across the city, hosting an array of international design in the event’s fifth edition
By Will Jennings Published
-
Frenchette Bakery at the Whitney mixes art and architecture to foster ‘a sense of gathering’
Frenchette Bakery at the Whitney bridges art and architecture to craft a food and beverage interior that is smart and welcoming to all
By Ellie Stathaki Published