tehama grasshopper

 
 
 

A surprising integration of old and new elements, of competing urban forces, brings the remodeled warehouse alive.

 
 
 
 

Three stories of interlocked spaces have distinct personalities and functions: office, main living area, and pent­house.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

The rigidity of the original concrete structure is broken down in a subtle interplay of light, surfaces, levels, and indoor and outdoor spaces—making the urban living experience as richly textured as the city itself.

 
 
 
 
 
 

The new lobby for the ground-floor office space opens onto a private residential entry with a custom steel staircase. This simple, unassuming entrance remains true to the industrial nature of the building and surrounding neighborhood.

 
 
 
 
 

The second floor is the main living space for the young owners and their child. Its focus: a new courtyard, cut out from the existing floor plate, which connects the building to the new penthouse above and to the sky.

 
 
 
 

This vertical section translates loft into house—an inversion of open-plan residential design—and brings natural light and air to every room. It offers multiple layers of transparency and views from one floor to the next, thus interweaving the inside and outside spaces with a play of light and dark.

 
 
 
 

Reminiscent of rooftop staircase enclosures on old San Francisco warehouses, the penthouse adds natural form to the urban landscape—like a grasshopper settled lightly on the building surface. Its angular structural scheme, true to the opposing forces of the grasshopper’s back legs and body, creates a tension and a resolution of gravitational forces.

 
 
 
 
 

Publications

2014/01 Hemma-RUM

2012/10 West Coast Modern

2012/06 Masterpieces: Roof Architecture + Design

2011/06 21st Century Sustainable Homes

2010/12 Atlas of World Interior Design

2010/05 Residential Architect

2010/04 150 Best Bathroom Ideas

2010/02 US Architecture

2009/08 SF Examiner

2009/10 Collection US Architecture

2009/01 California Home + Design

2008/08 International New Architecture

2008/07 Urban Homes

2008/07 Small Firms Great Projects

Awards

2009 California Home & Design Awards

2009 IIDA NC, Honor Award

2008 AIA EB Exceptional Residential Honor Award

2008 AIA SF Excellence in Architecture Honor Award

2008 AIA Institute Honor Award for Interior Architecture

2008 Residential Architect Grand Design Award

2008 Custom Home Design Merit Award

2007 AIA CC Merit Award