A contemporary home for an artist and craftsman, this mountain home provides both living and working space in a private forested setting, with views to the surrounding peaks.  After a long career building luxury custom homes, the owner is now building his own custom home, conceived in three distinct volumes.  The “work” volume, to be clad in flat weathering steel, contains the garage, guest quarters, a large art studio, and a large shop space.  The “living” volume is cut deeply into the hillside.  Inside, the living volume is defined by heavy gray thermal-mass concrete walls, oversized glass, and warm, finely-crafted wooden elements.  The living volume is sheltered by a cantilevered timber roof, which extends out to cover the outdoor living area and shade the oversized glass.  The “living” and “work” volumes come together at a central square tower, which houses a dynamic entry space and home office.  Both “living” and “tower” volumes will be clad in “Shou Sugi Ban” (black-charred cedar), which, like other finish elements, will be crafted by the owner.

This design of this home arose from the owners’ creative vision and experience, together with Conterra’s collaboration on all elements of design, budget and project phasing.   The home’s solar power array is tied-into the electric grid, allowing the owner to seamlessly “sell” power to the power company on sunny days, or “buy-back” power during extended periods of clouds.  Thermal-mass, passive solar, and highly insulated construction elements together greatly reduce the home’s energy consumption.  Abundant natural stone, excavated from the site during construction, will be used to shape interior elements, retaining walls, and outdoor kitchen and living areas.