Placed delicately in its context, architecture firm DUST's Tucson Mountain Retreat is situated on the outskirts of the lush Sonoran Desert, designed in direct response to its intriguing setting. The architects, who describe the project as being ‘rooted in the desert’, have created a striking rammed earth dwelling that makes minimum impact on its fragile environment. It seamlessly blends into the surrounding Arizona landscape, featuring elegant, clean lines and a minimalist aesthetic – making it the perfect backdrop for our September issue’s ‘High noon’ fashion shoot.
The house was meticulously positioned to optimise sun exposure without excessive solar heat gain and to allow for uninterrupted 360-degree views. The initial decision to use rammed earth greatly informed the design and construction of the property and played a crucial role in the process of submerging the home into the landscape.
Take an interactive tour of Tucson Mountain Retreat
The home’s designated car parking space is kept at bay, strategically positioned 400 feet from the entrance, requiring visitors to approach it by foot. As water is geographically scarce, the architects’ design incorporates a 30,000-gallon rainwater harvesting system to service the house all year round. The low, horizontal home stretches along an east-west axis, with the sleeping areas extending into a number of patios which open towards the south, protected by the intense desert sun by deep overhangs.
The internal program is separated into three zones: living, sleeping and entertainment areas. These three areas occupy a different section of the structure and the visitor has to step outside one in order to enter the next. This gesture both allows a level of privacy between uses, and urges the inhabitants to be at one with the breathtaking desert landscape.
The ‘High noon’ fashion shoot is featured in the September 2016 issue of Wallpaper* (W*210)
The home is divided into three clear zones: the living areas, the bedrooms and the entertainment quarters
An earthy, warm aesthetic is afforded via the rammed earth construction, whereby soil is compacted into architectural formwork
A series of sculptural concrete steps greets visitors and leads them to the main entrance
The architects describe their design as being 'rooted in the desert', due to its pared down natural aesthetic that blends seamlessly with its setting
Excessive solar heat gain has been avoided by orienting the house on an east-west axis and by reducing door and window openings along these façades
Information
For more information on the Tucson Mountain Retreat, visit the DUST website or the Tucson Mountain Retreat website
Photography: Bill Timmerman
-
Let there be light: a closer look at Prada’s stripped-back S/S 2026 show set‘This is the first time the Fondazione is completely bare, with the light coming in,’ said Raf Simons backstage at Prada’s ‘light, fresh, colourful’ and ‘human’ S/S 2026 men’s show in Milan
-
A Swedish scooter blends Teenage Engineering’s aesthetic with accessible electric mobilityThe EPA1 Scooter is the first product from mobility start-up Vässla, an assured and flexible design shaped in conjunction with TE to assist everyday urban mobility
-
Discover Canadian modernist Daniel Evan White’s pitch-perfect homesCanadian architect Daniel Evan White (1933-2012) had a gift for using the landscape to create extraordinary homes; revisit his story in an article from the Wallpaper* archives (first published in 2011)
-
Tour this fire-resilient minimalist weekend retreat in CaliforniaA minimalist weekend retreat was designed as a counterpoint to a San Francisco pied-à-terre; Edmonds + Lee Architects’ Amnesia House in Napa Valley is a place for making memories
-
A New Zealand house on a rugged beach exemplifies architect Tom Kundig's approach in rich, yet understated luxuryThis coastal home, featured in 'Tom Kundig: Complete Houses', a new book launch in the autumn by Monacelli Press, is a perfect example of its author's approach to understated luxury. We spoke to Tom Kundig, the architect behind it
-
Tour architect Paul Schweikher’s house, a Chicago midcentury masterpieceNow hidden in the Chicago suburbs, architect Paul Schweikher's former home and studio is an understated midcentury masterpiece; we explore it, revisiting a story from the Wallpaper* archives, first published in April 2009
-
The world of Bart Prince, where architecture is born from the inside outFor the Albuquerque architect Bart Prince, function trumps form, and all building starts from the inside out; we revisit a profile from the Wallpaper* archive, first published in April 2009
-
Is embracing nature the key to a more fire-resilient Los Angeles? These landscape architects think soFor some, an executive order issued by California governor Gavin Newsom does little to address the complexities of living within an urban-wildland interface
-
Hop on this Fire Island Pines tour, marking Pride Month and the start of the summerA Fire Island Pines tour through the work of architecture studio BOND is hosted by The American Institute of Architects New York in celebration of Pride Month; join the fun
-
A Laurel Canyon house shows off its midcentury architecture bonesWe step inside a refreshed modernist Laurel Canyon house, the family home of Annie Ritz and Daniel Rabin of And And And Studio
-
A refreshed Rockefeller Wing reopens with a bang at The Met in New YorkThe Met's Michael C Rockefeller Wing gets a refresh by Kulapat Yantrasast's WHY Architecture, bringing light, air and impact to the galleries devoted to arts from Africa, Oceania and the Ancient Americas
