LIGHT AND ITS VARIETY

Steven Holl Architects’ design for a single​-​family house allows the daylight to enter the interior space in various forms.

Located in a rural area in Dutchess County, north of New York, the building design is composed of a dark polygonal prism. The large openings at the facade and smaller ones at the roof invite sunlight into space in various directions and forms. Interiors then overlap diagonally connecting upward toward the triangle of light.

Rising above the ground at one corner of the building, the greenhouse has operable glass panels, offering permeability in between the interior and exterior. The embedded solar stack system in the facades heats the volume in winter and cools via stack effect in summer, while the photovoltaic cells assist the electrical system. In this way​,​ the architectural design responds to its natural surrounding not only with its angular organic form but also with sustainable energy solutions.

Photography: © Bilyana Dimitrova