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

Ponderosa Bend is a new Oregon house in the Pacific Northwest, the work of developer Malaspina Design. It is the first in a series of homes being built in the Oregon locality of Bend, designed by the Spanish firm of FRPO (Fernando Rodríguez and Pablo Oriol).
Drone-eye view
An award-winning Oregon house
The house, which recently won the Luis M Mansilla Award at the 2023 COAM Awards, is one of a series of projects being built in the area, with the intention of ‘blending Pacific Northwest dream home aesthetics with modern architecture’, with the latter sourced from Europe wherever possible.
The house in the neighbourhood
FRPO’s first structure has made a mark, a single-storey courtyard house that wraps its asymmetric form around an existing tree, with a series of covered terraces accessed from many of the key rooms. The project makes ambitious use of new materials, from microcement renders to aluminium panels, with large-scale glulam wooden beams used to support the roof structure.
The internal courtyard
The ponderosa tree at the heart of the structure gives the house its name. One section of the circular plan is made up of the car port, store and a self-contained study/guest room. To the left of the car port is the main entrance, which opens onto the kitchen diner, and then clockwise round to the living space, bracketed by external decks and with glass walls on each side.
The main living room
A glazed corridor overlooking the internal courtyard leads to the generous main bedroom suite, with its internal courtyard and large dressing room, and then on round to a family room and two more ensuite bedrooms.
The principal bedroom
The grey aluminium cladding is mirrored by the microcement concrete flooring, while the large glulam beams and wooden ceiling cladding is left exposed to provide a warm contrast. As one progresses through the space there are subtle level changes accompanying the well-defined geometry, shifting viewing angles out and across the house to the garden and landscape.
Study and guest suite
Further houses are planned on the site, building on the learnings of this first property. Each has a highly individual design to make the most of the views and topography.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.
-
Ulla Johnson’s collaboration with artist Julie Hamisky on the A/W 2025 runway is blooming lovely
Ulla Johnson and French artist Julie Hamisky have created 12 new jewellery pieces for the designer's A/W 2025 runway
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Tasneem Sarkez's heady mix of kitsch, Arabic and Americana hits London
Artist Tasneem Sarkez draws on an eclectic range of references for her debut solo show, 'White-Knuckle' at Rose Easton
By Zoe Whitfield Published
-
Meet Minnette de Silva, the trailblazing Sri Lankan modernist architect
Sri Lankan architect Minnette de Silva is celebrated in a new book by author Anooradha Iyer Siddiq, who looks into the modernist's work at the intersection of ecology, heritage and craftsmanship
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
A wavy roof tops this Accessory Dwelling Unit's cabin-like form: all miniature charm
This Californian Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) by Spiegel Aihara Workshop (SAW), offers an aesthetic and functional answer to housing shortages and multigenerational family living
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025: let the desert architecture party begin
Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025 launches on 13 February, marking the popular annual desert event’s 20th anniversary, celebrated this year through more midcentury marvels than ever
By Carole Dixon Published
-
On the shores of Discovery Bay, this wooden house is the ultimate waterside retreat
Dekleva Gregorič’s Discovery Bay House is a structured yet organic shelter that blends perfectly into the surrounding Pacific Northwest landscape
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The 10 emerging American Midwest architects you need to know
We profile 10 emerging American Midwest architects shaking up the world of architecture - in their territory, and beyond
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A light-filled New York loft renovation magics up extra space in a deceptively sized home
This New York loft renovation by local practice BOND is now a warm and welcoming apartment that feels more spacious than it actually is
By Léa Teuscher Published
-
Inside Bell Labs, the modernist vision behind Severance's minimalist setting
We explore the history of Bell Labs - now known as Bell Works - the modernist Eero Saarinen-designed facility in New Jersey, which inspired the dystopian minimalist setting of 'Severance'
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Zaha Hadid Architects’ new project will be Miami’s priciest condo
Construction has commenced at The Delmore, an oceanfront condominium from the firm founded by the late Zaha Hadid, ZHA
By Anna Solomon Published
-
A West Austin house invites you to commune with nature
Westview Residence by Alterstudio, a West Austin house among trees, makes the most of large windows and open-air decks in a verdant setting
By Ellie Stathaki Published