Broadway Terrace House, Oakland California
Located on a wooded site on the Oakland Hills Ridge overlooking San Francisco Bay, this California Contemporary house is designed as three discrete buildings on this ridge that embrace the central knoll of the property in an ‘L’ structure. The procession between these three building is a journey from low darkness to high light, from limited views to wide vistas, and from compressed space to expansive volume.
The living room , in its own building, is filled with natural daylight and is the most formal and ceremonial area of the three; To indicate this stature , the pavilion-like structure is set apart and rotated slightly from the other two, aligning with Mount Tamalpais across the Bay.
The exterior materials were selected to highlight the special qualities of the San Francisco & Bay Area, such as rough boards and rough stucco, which have a beautiful and rich appearance in the daylight. The use of materials in a sensuous way is an attribute of Critical Regionalism Design.