Interactive floor plan: Jackson Residence, Wyoming, US

Located on a sloping site on the western edge of the Gros Ventre Butte, the Jackson Residence has been designed by Seattle-based architecture practice Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, with interior design by WRJ Design.

(Image credit: William Abranowicz)

By Harriet Thorpe

last updated 20 October 2022

in Features

The Jackson Residence, designed by Seattle-based architects Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, is a spacious retreat for a couple whose retirement was an ideal moment for them to focus on their passion project – a piece of land that had lain dormant for years while life happened.

Their sloping plot, settled within the dramatic landscape of Jackson, Wyoming, had been waiting for the Jackson Residence to be built – a place for contemplation, family entertaining and a dramatic response to its location overlooking views of the Snake River Valley and the Teton Mountain Range.

Interactive tour of the Jackson Residence — Take an interactive tour of the Jackson Residence

The design of the house is a journey that starts at the edge of the plot; a private road moves through a sagebrush meadow alongside a grove of delicate aspen trees, descending between concrete walls that frame the moving landscape and arrive at a plateau that marks the entry to the house.

A steel canopy extends from a crevasse in the concrete façade that parts into a front door. Step inside and an axial view extends before you into the heart of the home, between two vast concrete fireplaces and out the other side to the study – a room with glazed walls that cantilevers into the landscape like a diving board into nature.

Jackson residence — *The entrance to the Jackson Residence.*

This upper level of the house is defined by a series of linear bars, wood-lined boxes and glazed ‘pavilions’ that are used as devices to segment space and frame the exterior landscape, creating intimate zoning for the couple.

The lower level – reached by a floating staircase – offers a different pace, opening up communal spaces for family time and a covered terrace for entertaining that extends into the landscape.

The two level 9000-sq-ft house follows the shape of the land, and also has an 870-sq-ft guest house and a 860-sq-ft garage.

The sagebrush meadow and a grove of aspen trees — The approach to the house which runs alongside the sagebrush meadow and a grove of aspen trees.

The entrance to the house, covered by a steel canopy.

The centre of the home — The axial view through the centre of the home.

The living space with a glass &rsquo;pavilion — The living space, which is enclosed with a glass ’pavilion’, with interiors designed by WRJ Design.

Floor to ceiling glazing wraps around the living spaces and overlooks the landscape.

The house cantilevers into the landscape, bringing the inhabitants closer to the natural environment.

Interior spaces — The interior spaces designed by WRJ Design are warm and welcoming.

Architectural framing devices feature across the home, creating the ’drama’ that the client desired.

The sleek kitchen features a window at the end that overlooks the landscape.

The landscape surrounding the Jackson Residence.

The bedroom overlooks green planting surrounding the house.

The house through planting and framed view — Nature encroaches into the house through planting and framed views

A image of bathtub — The free-standing tub in the bathroom.

INFORMATION
For more information, visit the Bohlin Cywinski Jackson website

TOPICS

Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.