Hill residences are sometimes some of the most challenging projects architects deal with in their career. The one we present you today is located in Beverly Hills, surrounded by oak trees and it was realized by Heusch Architecture Studio. The building looks like a modernist box wrapped in floor to ceiling glass, 12 feet above the ground. This was the most suitable solution for building on a hillside terrain. As you can see from the photos below, the house is raised by 10 narrow columns. By elevating the structure the need for a tall retaining wall, 15 feet away from the structure was eliminated. The architects wanted to minimize the impact on the natural site wooded with oak trees.
Here are some details of the project, as explained by the architects:
Elevating the structure, we gained more light for the interior spaces, views from every room, and more privacy. Also it created an interesting space underneath the house, part carport, part Zen garden. The pool is also elevated on 3 columns and the exterior west wall acts as a solarheat storage element. The 10 feet high interior walls are separated by the ceiling and floor by recessed shadow lines. The interior and exterior spaces blend into each other due to the use of frameless floor and ceiling glass. Also, notice a continuity of materials from the inside to the outside. The restrictive palette throughout the house and the custom designed furniture and cabinets characterize the minimalist environment.
They wanted to minimize the impact on the beautiful natural site heavily wooded with oak trees.
You gain a lot of wonderful views when you build on a hill. The pool is elevated, too.
The kitchen is spacious and lighted by sun all day long.
For the interiors, they chose natural materials such as Brazilian walnut floors inside and out, Portuguese limestone and Spanish marble.
