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Set on an urban in-fill lot at the edge of a terrace escarpment overlooking protected wetlands and a wild river, the Courtyard House weaves between natural and urban contexts.

Cabin at Longbranch | Olson Kundig

Protected by an overhang, and floating above ground level, this tertiary space is known in traditional homes as the "engawa." To sustain a unified look throughout, the floor and ceiling are clad in ipe wood.

After finding paradise on a Hawaiian papaya farm, filmmaker Jess Bianchi and jewelry designer Malia Grace Mau tapped San Francisco artist Jay Nelson to build their dream home in just five weeks. Located just one block from the beach, the Kauai residence takes inspiration from laid-back surf shacks and is mainly built with reclaimed wood.

The Harris family rests easy on their new back patio abutting the Belvedere lagoon. The first order of business for this green remodel was to reconnect the house with its surroundings.

The cabin’s concept was simple: To create a cabin that is small and sparse yet spatially rich. The 55-square-meter (592-square-foot) cabin, commissioned by a private client and completed in 2016, comprises a large living room, bedroom, ski room, and small annex with a utility room. It functions off the water and electricity grids.

Similar to his Falling Waters masterpiece, Tirranna was built on water and next to a waterfall. In fact, the word itself comes from an Aboriginal word meaning “running waters.”

Fields of native grasses connect the main residence, situated at the top of the slope, to the new structures scattered below. A pergola extends from the post-and-beam structure that was maintained during the remodel of the midcentury home.

During the daytime, the house is completely illuminated by natural light. Other energy-efficient features come in the form of the house's super thick building envelope, radiant floor heating, and cross-ventilation.

Jonathan Adler and Simon Doonan collaborated with New Haven, Connecticut, firm Gray Organschi on their midcentury-inspired New York vacation home.

Pasture Project is built on a pasture in the shadows of Mt. Olympus in Holladay, Utah by Imbue Design. With a focus on using minimal energy, the home’s living space is situated with a north/south orientation to aid in winter heat gain and summer protection.

In an attempt to create a strong connection to nature, Wright incorporated outdoor sleeping porches on all five of the bays.

Overlooking the Hudson River, Allan Shope’s nearly 3,000-square-foot sustainable home features handmade furniture and an undulating floor, all crafted from the site’s felled black walnut trees.

Designed in 1972 by local architect Edgar Waehrer, this home was renovated by creative director Ben Watson and his partner, painter Claudio Tschopp. As a later example of Northwest modernism, the home combined the clean lines and open plans of mid-century modernism with an emphasis on natural local materials and natural light. However, while the 16-foot ceilings in the home gave a sense of airiness, the plentiful wood paneling on the walls kept it dark and feeling damp, and so the couple bleached the walls to better reflect natural light.

“I love this low-level stair window. It’s at head height when you’re at the bottom of the stairs; it gives you a glimpse of, and connection to, the garden outside. Most of the windows capture what I’d call ‘hero shots,’ but some, like this one, are completely unexpected.”

Ray sits at the central hearth on the north end of the comfortable sunken living area. From this perspective, you can see how the interior spaces flow into one another, passing one half-level up into the breakfast nook and kitchen and out from there onto the overgrown hillside. The various built-in furnishings have all been there since the house's construction.