Favorites

“From anywhere in the house, you have a sense of the outdoors,” says Melonie, “and yet it’s very private.” Ikegami agrees. “The building was really about the landscape—it can dissolve into the background,” he says. In the master bedroom, Japanese Tansu chests from the couple’s previous home flank a Duxiana bed. The full-height windows and swing door are from Western Window Systems.

“During summer there is so much greenery, and it grows and changes every day. It’s very different in the autumn and winter—even the acoustics are different,

With its shou sugi ban exterior, high-pitched roof and monochrome palette, this family home nods to Japanese design.

The house's facade features circular windows that glow at night; some look into the Zen garden at the lift landing.

The house that started it all: Philip Johnson's Glass House in New Canaan. He and David Whitney used to invite great minds from the architecture, design, and art worlds to the house for evenings of discussion and debate. When the Glass House opened to the public in 2007, its programmers continued the invitation-only tradition.

In Chile's Chiloé Archipelago, architect Guillermo Acuña developed a 12-acre island for his friends and family to unwind, first with a boathouse, later with pathway-connected cabins at the water's edge. Design details include glazed walls, eco-friendly pine, and a bright red palette that calls to mind the intensely colored chilco flowers that bloom here come spring and summer.

Nestled at the end of a private cul-de-sac on nearly an acre of pristine waterfront property in Sagaponack, New York, this distinctive, contemporary retreat from the renowned architectural firm Bates Masi + Architects makes a dramatic modern statement. Juxtaposing elegant, Alaskan cedar siding with broad expanses of glass, the home exudes an effortless and seamless flow between its indoor and outdoor spaces.

Inspired by the surrounding landscape of chestnut trees, rocky hillside, and bubbling stream, Portuguese architecture firm 3r Ernesto Pereira chose to blend into, and take advantage of, the local geography rather than fight against it at this sleek, modern home near the coastal city of Porto. At a cost of €100,000 (approximately $125,000) and measuring about 140 square meters, this stunning, wood-and-glass retreat took about four months to construct.

Built in 1953, the Wiley House is made up of a single glass-and-wood rectangular pavilion that’s perched on top of a rectangular box made of stone and concrete. Johnson chose the six-acre plot of land himself and was particularly fond of the natural slopes of the site, which is surrounded by hickory trees.

C-Glass House by Deegan Day Design engages not only Philip Johnson’s Glass House and the Farnsworth House by Mies van der Rohe, but also the California legacies of Elwood, Koenig and others. Though its architectural lineage is self-evident, this glass house is as indebted to artists’ explorations of glazed enclosures as it is to the precedents of Johnson and Mies.

Set at the edge of Stoney Lake in Ontario, Canada, is a photographer's home, studio, and boat house designed by Toronto-based studio GH3. The glass box unites landscape and architecture while providing ideal spaces for photography, programmatic functions for living, and boat storage.

Located in Queensland, Australia, the residence was created by Sarah Waller Design, an architectural studio that’s based in the Queensland suburb of Doonan. The glass pavilion–style home was designed for Sarah Waller and her family and sits on top of a polished concrete slab. Inspired by the midcentury era, it looks out to the Noosa Valley golf course.

The Glass House Dream & Charme combines innovative technology with modern design and Italian architecture. Located in the heart of Monferrato, this stunning villa boasts floor to ceiling windows with 360-degree views of the surrounding hills.

Located in Aarhus, Denmark, Villa R is a minimalist, serene structure clad in zinc panels. "The objective was to create a house that brings the forest inside through large glass panels—and create an ever-changing seasonal backdrop for the interior living spaces," stated the architecture firm, C.F. Møller, of the 3,200-square-foot abode.

Named Los Terrenos, meaning The Terrains, this retreat in Monterrey, Mexico, was designed by Mexico City–based architect Tatiana Bilbao to reflect the lush woodland hillside it sits on. The dwelling consists of two volumes made of rammed earth, terracotta clay bricks, and a facade clad in mirrored glass.

Located in Chileno Valley, just three miles west of downtown Petaluma, the barn is complimented by its setting and the coastal range beyond. Its entry frames a view through the house and out to the meadow. The light-filled living area opens up to the long view south and gathers the bedrooms and kitchen to either side.

When glass dominates a home, the result is a borderless residence that syncs with its environs, creating a stunning, new visual and psychological sense of space. See how these glass homes use the versatile material to create ambiance and connect with the outdoors.