The rugged wilderness surrounding this Big Sur house is representative of its section of the Californian coast. Big Sur stretches 75 miles from Carmel to Gorda and offers truly dramatic landscapes, with the Santa Lucia mountains rising sharply 5,000 ft above sea level. It is in this dynamic and remote environment, shaped by heavy winter storms, wildfires, and the mighty Pacific Ocean, that you will find the latest private residence by Field Architecture.
Step inside this Big Sur house by Field Architecture
Led by father-and-son team Stan and Jess Field, the practice is known for a spade of projects in California, ranging from an eco-friendly synagogue in Palo Alto to a private residence in Sonoma Valley. Set amidst Big Sur’s lush ravines, their latest build was designed to withstand the area’s many challenges, including coastal erosion, seismic activity, extreme temperatures swings and corroding ocean spray.
‘When I was first invited to design a house for this rocky cove, I wondered if a residence on this site could in fact survive, or if it would be consumed by the sea,’ says Jess Field. ‘I knew that we had to design with great care. As a first step, we had to pause and listen in order to absorb the natural behaviours and the magnitude of the forces that shape this remarkable place. Only then could we proceed, and with humility.’
A few days of digging at the coastal site revealed a beautiful grand ravine that had been filled in over time. Formed by one of those intermittent streams that cascades down into the sea, typical of Big Sur, the ravine carved the property in two distinct sections and provided the main inspiration for the design concept.
‘By spanning this crevasse from end to end, including an entry bridge, we brought this natural feature directly into the heart of the home. We also conserved the ravine and restored its ecological function as a seasonal waterway,’ says Field, who describes his approach to architecture as both artistic and practical, ‘aiming to celebrate the natural opportunities offered by each site.’
Accessed via a steep driveway winding its way through a grove of cypresses, the house is surrounded by dense vegetation. Designed to become part of the landscape, its walls and rooflines mimic the steep coastal terrain and stratified rocks found in the surrounding sea cliffs.
The wooden entrance door leads to a Japanese-inspired entry pavilion, with a bench where you remove your shoes before stepping onto a warm wooden floor. A stunning glass-enclosed bridge then takes you across the ravine to the main house, immersing you in the landscape with floor-to-ceiling windows.
Inside the main structure, spaces flow ‘seamlessly between the places of shelter in the east, where the house burrows deep into the site’s topography, and more expansive rooms to the west, where the ground drops off and the house perches above the ocean.’ A large open-air deck and infinity pool offer views of the crashing waves on the nearby rocky outcrops.
Warm oak floors complement the cool grey quartzite walls, while the beech wood kitchen features three perfectly poised islands with tapered shapes reflecting the geometry of both the house and surrounding nature. ‘As they float on minimal touch points, the kitchen islands evoke the small outcroppings of rock visible in the water just off the coast,’ says Field.
-
Discothèque perfumes evoke the scent of Tokyo in the year 2000As Discothèque gets ready to launch its first perfume collection, Mary Cleary catches up with the brand’s founders
-
This unassuming London house is a radical rethinking of the suburban homeStation Lodge by architect Andrei Saltykov in South West London offers a radical subversion to regional residential architecture
-
Explore 100 years of Svenskt Tenn and the interiors Estrid Ericson has crafted‘A Philosophy of Home’ explores 100 years of Svenskt Tenn and the daring vision for interiors its founder Estrid Ericson developed
-
Gardens & Villas offers the unexpected through ‘deconstructed’ desert living in CaliforniaGardens & Villas, a home in La Quinta, California, brings contemporary luxury to its desert setting through a collaboration between architects Andrew McClure and Christopher McLean
-
First look inside 62 Reade Street, a clock factory turned family home62 Reade Street, a boutique New York residential project by architects ODA, unveils its first apartment interior, styled courtesy of Hovey Design
-
Paul Rudolph at The Met: ‘from Christmas lights to megastructures’‘Materialized Space: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph’ opens at the Met in New York, exploring the modernist master's work through a feast of an exhibition
-
Jewel Box is a Californian project of small scale and big impactJewel Box by Red Dot Studio is the reimagining of a Californian 20th-century gem through a creative addition
-
Germane Barnes exhibition explores notions of classical architecture and identityGermane Barnes exhibition 'Columnar Disorder' opens at the Art Institute of Chicago
-
Omaha’s Joslyn Art Museum's newest addition effortlessly complements the institution’s existing complexThe third addition to Joslyn Art Museum is designed by Snøhetta, which opted for voluminous common spaces and illuminating atriums
-
Morning Dove in Twentynine Palms combines earth construction and otherworldly desert viewsMorning Dove by Homestead Modern in Twentynine Palms offers a striking landscape and rammed-earth construction for idyllic desert escapes
-
Larry Booth's 'House of Light' showcases an impeccable slice of postmodernist heritageA 1980s Larry Booth-designed Chicago townhouse on a narrow plot is a striking example of his author's work, set alongside the city’s postmodernist archive
