By Rita Roy Choudhury
Photography: Alex Lukey
& SilverHouse; courtesy v2com
Read Time: 2 mins
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This modern
renovated 110-year-old beach home responds to both - being “green” with a low
carbon footprint, and the overall “feel” of the area...
Surrounded by
beaches in a charming laid-back neighbourhood of Toronto, is this elegant
contemporary interpretation of the beach house conceived by German architect,
Felix Leicher. Incorporating the need to be green, he concentrates on creating
a home that consumes low energy and runs on low maintenance in the long term.
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To achieve this,
Felix zeroes in on a white reflective outside with deeply grooved metal panels
for the sides and the roof; and polished, sophisticated white interiors. For
natural cooling and heating, the front and the rear of the house uses thermally
modified wooden planks, which are connected to the side panels by open joints,
creating a building envelope that reduces leakage of air, effective for indoor
climate control. While the original bay
window and front porch are retained, they are strategically shifted to render a
modern asymmetrical appearance in order to provide more natural light,
eliminating the need for electric lighting during the day.
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In the
interiors, the four-level home boasts an open plan that provides a continuous,
spacious living area to include the drawing room, the family rooms and the
kitchen, all enveloped in a natural wood cocoon. Recyclable materials such as
copper are used wherever possible, to reduce carbon footprint.
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Playing off the
building materials, the white walls and ceilings, white-washed solid oak floors
with occasional accents of wood trim lining the windows bring the outside in,
creating a harmonious, contemporary and spacious beach house feel. Even the
shower doors are glass as if to extend the eye to the length and breadth of the
room; floor-to-ceiling windows further augment space and exploit natural light.
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A truly
remarkable observation - occasional sparse louvered screens are the only design
element used to divide the space. This
sophisticated mature space provides a canvas for the owner’s eclectic art
collection; and almost naturally, the art becomes the focus here.
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The layered
design with its combination of open spaces creates a compact building volume - testimony
to smart design and layout with a near-zero carbon footprint.
Fact File
Project
Name: 46H
Location:
Toronto, Ontario Canada
Design &
Development: baukultur/ca
Designer: Felix
Leicher
Contractor:
Tipeq Inc.
Use: Detached
House; Residential Single Dwelling
Size: 3 storeys
+ finished basement; 2,880 sqft
great design!
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