Home Interior

“The house almost doesn’t exist, but serves as the subtle cloak between inhabitant and environment.”—Cynthia, resident

Large windows and sliding doors with maximal operability are placed throughout, including the master bedroom, where expansive lift-and-slide mechanisms line three exterior walls. The room is furnished by a custom mahogany headboard and bed frame by Larry Hepler and a glass Murano lamp by Massimiliano Schiavon.

A palette of stone, concrete, and greenery greets guests at the home’s front entrance.

“We could lift up very easily the walls, the fittings, the shelves, the light fixtures, everything. You couldn’t have made this with wood or even steel.” —Peter Rose, architect

An attentive sensitivity to site played into nearly every aspect of both the exterior andinterior spaces of the home. Architect Peter Rose collaborated with landscape architect Michael Van Valkenburgh, who worked to craft and maintain the wild, organic feel of the environs. Will Parry, a local builder, custom-fabricated all of the sustainably harvested Spanish cedar-and-glass windows and skylights throughout. Here, a vertical-swinging window at the end of the entry hallway opens directly to a lush expanse of vegetation.

A Frank sofa and chaise by Antonio Citterio for B&B Italia furnish the main living space. The long tracking curtains are from JW Designs, and the leather Paulistano armchairs by Brazilian designer Paulo Mendes da Rocha are from Design Within Reach.

Douglas fir and Alaskan cedar richly line the interior walls, and the flooring is made of Vermont slate. In the kitchen and dining area, a group of Wishbone chairs by Hans Wegner for Carl Hansen & Søn surrounds a table by local furniture maker Larry Hepler.

"Minimalism in general holds great appeal—to me that means clean spaces and simple materials with as little visual interruption as possible (including very little in the way of furnishings), so the eye travels easily around the space, giving a sense of expansiveness," says Rios.

Looking out from the roof deck gives an expansive panorama of the San Francisco skyline, but a peek over the edge reveals the minimal lines of the backyard below.

Clear, minimal lines define the residence’s cabinetry and fenestration. Furnishings include the Nelson Platform bench by Herman Miller.

On the main floor, the kitchen islandis like Zulaikha’s own version of a Donald Judd sculpture: minimal, freestanding, and geometric.

Thanks to the clever placement of a cedar hot tub on the bathroom deck, rinsing off after a dip doesn’t involve dripping water all over the house. The all-marble bathroom features Boffi Minimal Series fixtures.

The stark white minimalist kitchen features quartz countertops, a Gessi Oxygene tap, a 1810 Company Zenuno sink, and energy-efficient Bosch appliances.

The sparse interior lets the house's waterfront setting stand out. Stool_One seats by Konstantin Grcic pull up to a simple wood island.