After moving to Chicago from Lithuania in the 1990s, Danas and Odeta Lapkus quickly discovered the small beach town of Beverly Shores on Lake Michigan in Indiana. Just an hour drive from the city, the community is a tranquil getaway situated among rolling beach dunes and towering trees within a state park. “We would visit Beverly Shores’ beaches and dune trails with friends for years,” reflects Danas. Eventually, the couple sought out Chicago firm dSPACE Studio to design a family retreat here.

“Beverly Shores has a very interesting history of modern and progressive architecture,” says Robert McFadden, principal at dSPACE. The community was a satellite site for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, hosting several homes designed specifically for its “Century of Progress” theme, five of which are still extant. Building on this history, McFadden and Kevin Toukoumidis, another of the firm’s principals, set out to design a home that was both innovative and artful. “The intention was to create art,” declares Danas.

The result is a 2,200-square-foot home set atop the site’s highest point, nicknamed Tree House by the designers because of its upright, three-level plan. In part, its shape was out of necessity. “The property is quite steep, and there were some restrictions from the local municipality about where we could and could not build,” explains McFadden. “That meant we had to focus on a limited footprint.” Because the volume had to move up instead of out, the designers decided to invert the standard multilevel floor plan by locating the primary living spaces on the top level.

“The Lapkuses mentioned they wanted to showcase the natural landscape surrounding the home,” says McFadden. “They didn’t want us to focus on one particular viewport, but instead to look at all four sides of the property.” By carving out voids and apertures in the rectangular massing, each of which points to a different cardinal direction, the design team gave each room its own unique view.

“In life, I strive for essentials: freedom, beauty, excitement, oneness with nature,” explains Danas. “We designed the house to work as an observation point of the natural surroundings with three balconies oriented to different directions. We like moving from one to another depending on the direction of the sun and wind.”

Stacking the home’s program vertically also meant the circulation and entry to the home had to be carefully orchestrated. “It becomes an experience and an adventure to enter this house,” says Toukoumidis. The home is accessed via a steep driveway, where a concrete stair leads up around a corner to a cedar-clad porch that serves as the entry. “Inside, it’s quiet,” says Toukoumidis. “The house and the architecture becomes a backdrop to nature.”

Solid red oak flooring was chosen to bring warmth and comfort to the interiors. The home’s lowest level contains two guest bedrooms, one of which doubles as an office, with the primary suite located on the second floor. On the top level is an open plan living, dining, and kitchen area, which spills onto a south-facing balcony. “We studied a number of different scenarios with the clients,” says McFadden. “But it really seemed they wanted to spend most of their time in the living spaces on the top floor. They wanted to be up high with the views of the surrounding forest, and have the secluded feel of being out in nature.”

“In life, I strive for essentials: freedom, beauty, excitement, oneness with nature.”
—Danas Lapkus, owner

Because the living area combines so many functions in a limited area, the designers had to get creative. “We asked ourselves, how can we create multiple uses for this space?” reflects Toukoumidis. “How can we expand on its functionality to make the most of the tree house?” A built-in bar, wall-mounted shelving, and a hidden projector screen for movie nights provide for all of the family’s creature comforts. A retractable window wall in the living room opens to a cedar-clad deck with a roll-down bug screen, allowing the outdoor space to expand the living area during temperate weather.

Odeta and Danas are finding that their home is shaping their lives in ways they expected, but it continues to surprise. “It feels a little strange to be in the house,” admits Danas. “Since we were so involved in the design, it reflects our dreams of an ideal life. Thus, the house seems to be trying to change our lives—and it feels right.”

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: dSPACE Studio Architecture / @dspace_studio

General Contractor: Caron Custom Homes

Structural Engineer: Goodfriend Magruder Structure

Landscape Design, Interior Design, Lighting Design: dSPACE Studio Architecture / @dspace_studio