This project is a modification of the front façade of an existing mid 1990’s ranch style home located in Omaha Nebraska. Our initial concepts were guided by the accentuation of the horizontal planes of the original design, with the introduction of textural materiality that would rhythmically denote the main elements of the façade and give focus to the entry in a textural composition rather than through the use of forms and massing.
The extrusion of different layers of materials such as wood, glass and concrete with an underline of horizontal similitude, allow the entry sequence to generate interest in a quiet and tactile manner. The process of “making” has always been something that has an intense interest in our work, in this case making the corrugated concrete wall as an expression of the form rather than the finish product was an opportunity of imprinting a residue. The capture of a single moment in the process of constructing, the moment when the forms were created and placed to receive the agent concrete in this case, solidified leaving the evidence of the constructed process.
The tactile experience of a door that is sequentially continuous as part of the façade is another node that we explore in our work. The rusted steel base plate anchors the door and gives it another layer of materiality. The grey stucco provides a background in which these horizontal materials can be orchestrated.
Illumination as another layer of crucial materiality reinforces the rhythmic framework to highlight the original design concept.