Houses

To revive the original architects’ vision, studioWTA restored a four-foot roof overhang above a wall of La Cantina sliders. The shade helps limit solar gain, while a pool by Evans + Lighter Landscape Architecture provides respite on sweltering summer days.

Components for low-cost prefab homes designed by Habitat for Humanity and the firm Minarc for South Central Los Angeles were trucked in and assembled over three days. Photos by Art Gray.

A bridge spans the home’s steep site for street access.

Masterfully architected Rising Glen

“Simple rectangular volumes with simple details” is how designer Thomas Egidi describes the house he created for architect Carlos Dell’Acqua in Malibu. “I wanted to stress its horizontality,” Dell’Acqua notes. Inside the dwelling, which is entered via a bridge that pierces the 25-foot-high main facade, the view opens up to a panorama of mountains and sea. Ipe flooring is used for the walkway and throughout the interior.

An expanse of windows along the transparent, glass-filled southern facade keeps the main living area well-lit during the day; a grid of Buschfeld Shop-V 100 lights illuminates it by night.

A pair of Molded Plywood lounge chairs by Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller sit opposite a BoConcept coffee table and a sofa of Paul’s design. For his father’s book collection, Paul created a library around the double-height staircase.

Architect Sven Matt mixed basic shapes with rich details in this Austrian home. The lattice shell was hewn from silver fir sourced from a nearby forest. Eternit shingles clad the roof.

The Stahl House has been featured in numerous movies and photoshoots and was immortalized by photographer Julius Shulman.

For Karina Inzunza, Graham Barker, Melana Janzen, and John McMinn (pictured left to right), a shared vacation home on Georgian Bay was the perfect opportunity to pool resources, split costs, and create an extended family unit.

Challenged by the dimensions of the narrow lot, the team worked through significant programmatic and logistical constraints during the design and construction process. The final concept for the layout was a modern take on the side hall plan. The living spaces are stretched back deep into the lot, and strategically raised above grade to allow sunlight to penetrate into multiple living spaces. The multifunctional courtyard serves as outdoor workspace, gardening area, children's play area, and covered parking during winter months.

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.

Transforming shipping containers into habitable spaces is a growingly popular subset of prefab. Just off the Delaware River in Pennsylvania, Martha Moseley and Bill Mathesius adapted an unused concrete foundation to create a home made from 11 stacked shipping containers. "We were inspired by the site, and our desire to have something cool and different," says Moseley.

Solar panels catch the sun's energy; wide expanses of open doors and windows provide cross-ventilation; and strategic overhangs shade against the desert's endless heat.