Our client is a talented and respected painter, as well as a professor at the University Of Arkansas. She purchased and removed a derelict house to obtain a south sloping corner lot in an older part of town on which to build. She believes in living simply but well, and wants a house and studio that fits her life now and in the future.

She and a friend worked out a diagram for the site, deciding to put the studio on the north side of the house, which in turn occupies the south side. There it is afforded the long view down the slope of the neighborhood and across the valley to the adjacent ridges, which hold the taller buildings of the university and the city square.

Her thoughts on architecture and site mesh with ours, and so we set out to design a house that takes advantage of solar access, controls and conserves the rain water runoff, and preserves the existing trees as well as provides space for outdoor living. In addition, we want the house to work well with its older neighbors, while asserting its youth and place in this century.

 Most importantly, we want to make the spaces that facilitate her life, and inspire her creativity. Daylighting is especially important in the studio, but is also used in the house as well as a way to link spaces together. By manipulating the section and the plan together, we are able to create generous spaces in a small envelope.