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Collection by Kelsey Keith

Renovating to Maximize Light

Who doesn't want a little more light in their lives? In these eight projects we explore the power of illumination, from a modernist skylight in Harlem to concrete-clad funnels that mitigate the harsh sun of Puerto Rico, proving that architects across the globe know myriad ways to harness the sun.

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Architects Carrie and Kevin Burke designed their home to be a time-telling observatory. Sunlight is corseted through a 24-inch glass eye suspended just beneath a skylight, making the living room double as a sundial.
Architects Carrie and Kevin Burke designed their home to be a time-telling observatory. Sunlight is corseted through a 24-inch glass eye suspended just beneath a skylight, making the living room double as a sundial.
Keisha Martin and her cousin, Mickeda, chat underneath the house’s crowning glory, the oculus, which allows light to spill onto each floor of the house.
Keisha Martin and her cousin, Mickeda, chat underneath the house’s crowning glory, the oculus, which allows light to spill onto each floor of the house.
Architect Gregory Phillips connected the original house to a new modern extension that doesn’t interfere with the surrounding houses. “I try to be true to the location,”he explains, “so it doesn’t seem like some spaceship has landed.”
Architect Gregory Phillips connected the original house to a new modern extension that doesn’t interfere with the surrounding houses. “I try to be true to the location,”he explains, “so it doesn’t seem like some spaceship has landed.”
It took more than a year for the Marcovitz-Geiger family just to navigate the tangle of renovation red tape to get the needed building permits for their Tribeca loft.
It took more than a year for the Marcovitz-Geiger family just to navigate the tangle of renovation red tape to get the needed building permits for their Tribeca loft.
The owners of this renovated mid-century modern home in California longed for an outdoor eating area, but with the house sited smack-dab in the middle of the 40-by-100-foot corner lot, the property offered neither adequate space nor privacy from the streets or neighbors. The design team specified a 14.5-by-6.5-foot retractable skylight over the dining room, which brings in sunshine and provides natural ventilation. The Rollamatic window quietly transforms the space into a near-outdoor oasis in just over ten seconds. Photo by Mathew Scott.
The owners of this renovated mid-century modern home in California longed for an outdoor eating area, but with the house sited smack-dab in the middle of the 40-by-100-foot corner lot, the property offered neither adequate space nor privacy from the streets or neighbors. The design team specified a 14.5-by-6.5-foot retractable skylight over the dining room, which brings in sunshine and provides natural ventilation. The Rollamatic window quietly transforms the space into a near-outdoor oasis in just over ten seconds. Photo by Mathew Scott.
The Felds’ new kitchen is clean, modern, and laced with industrial touches (laboratory faucets, lab glass pendant lamps designed by Sand, stainless steel appliances) while animated by materials and crafted elements that radiate warmth: fir floors unearthed from beneath two layers of linoleum; a fireclay farm sink made in England; Carrera marble counters that extend up the walls; walnut shelving; and industrial mechanisms that put the hardware on display, such as the suspended rolling blackboard that conceals the water heater.
The Felds’ new kitchen is clean, modern, and laced with industrial touches (laboratory faucets, lab glass pendant lamps designed by Sand, stainless steel appliances) while animated by materials and crafted elements that radiate warmth: fir floors unearthed from beneath two layers of linoleum; a fireclay farm sink made in England; Carrera marble counters that extend up the walls; walnut shelving; and industrial mechanisms that put the hardware on display, such as the suspended rolling blackboard that conceals the water heater.
An ingenious floor treatment—slats laid over the ceiling beams—enables the skylight to do double duty, pouring sunlight into the living room below. The translucent bathroom wall turns that into triple duty.
An ingenious floor treatment—slats laid over the ceiling beams—enables the skylight to do double duty, pouring sunlight into the living room below. The translucent bathroom wall turns that into triple duty.