Set on an east-west axis, the home stays cool with shading south-facing glass, minimal west-facing glass, and operable windows that allow for natural ventilation. Energy recovery ventilators also bring fresh air into the home.

A Seattle family tasked Atmosphere Design Build with creating a sustainable dwelling in Nevada City, California, the matriarch's hometown and a historic mining community. The firm's material-driven approach channels the pioneer spirit of the gold rush, without compromising comfort or high-efficiency standards.

The extensive use of natural wood on nearly every surface makes the inside of The Barn feel like an extension of the landscape outside.

Simpatico Homes founder Seth Krubiner has lived in the prefab company’s nearly net-zero prototype since it was customized and lifted onsite in 2011.

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.

Sleeping nooks that look like the grooves in a block of cheese.

Rice surfs the net at the built-in desk.

A passage between the walls for hide and seek.

A new office sits at the front of the house, and its moody walls and bookshelves contrast the other rooms' mostly light and neutral palette.

Chickens foraging in an enclosed garden with vertical planters.

Completed in May 2018, the Crossfield Street House is the residence of architect Jonathan Pile, his wife Katherine, and their five-year-old son.

In this updated 1950s Portland home, a light gray Neo sofa by Bensen harmonizes with warm wooden walls, ceilings, and floors, as well as a red-and-mustard-yellow vintage rug.

The box-shaped extension plays off the familiar farmhouse typology, creating a series of intriguing contrasts.

A painting by Ginger’s grandmother hangs above a midcentury dining set Ginger found on Craigslist.

A modular shelf system by Alu provides a more sculptural take on the classic bathroom vanity in this Toronto home.

Most impressive of all, a solar array on the roof empowers the residents to produce more energy than they consume on-site.

Linda Taalman and Alan Koch, of Taalman Koch Architects, completed work on their glass iT House, a lovely, minimal home that tests the limits of living lightly on the land in the desert near Joshua Tree National Park. The bath and basin in the bathroom are by Duravit, and the orange wall is by Three Form.

Detail of the kitchen

Vintage Alvar Aalto Table Model 91 “I thought it would be interesting to include a piece of vintage furniture, since that’s where we got our start. It’s a bold and big table for such a restrained designer, with chunky legs and decorative veneer. It’s big for 1930’s standards, and still has labels and stickers on the bottom, including one from Harvey Nichols, the original importer.”

A view of the installation at the House for Contemporary Art in Belgium.

Numen's Net, occupied by gallery attendees.

A look at the small reading nook located on the level between the bedroom and ground floor.