Ashville, NC

The Barnard House concept envisions a new design that respectfully coexists with the existing structure, adding livable area both indoors and outdoors for a growing family. An older home situated on a hillside drive overlooking picturesque Asheville, North Carolina, the property had ample room for additional buildings to connect with the existing structure and the natural surroundings. The vision for this property is to build special moments through the effect of spatial progression throughout the house.

A bold black exterior façade displays transparent volume to integrate the two buildings and create interconnection with nature surrounding the property. The initial phase of the design process incorporated light and site studies to determine the best placement of the new buildings and influence the position of windows and rooms to maximize sun and natural light exposure, increasing heat gain inside the house during winter months for energy efficiency, and creating cross ventilation for natural air flow during warmer months.

In addition to the additional house structure, a garage was added as well as an outdoor living area with a knife-edged pool that appears to be floating at the edge of the property. A glass box connects the old and new house structures, and a courtyard garden area establishes a sense of arrival to the home and improves the overall functionality of the home’s entry and circulation.

An eye-catching design feature, the glass box is the bridge connecting the two structures with clear views to the pool and garden area opposite as one approaches through the garden area, creating a dramatic visual arrival through the transition of different volumes.

The dramatic exterior gives way to a subtle, toned-down interior that layers minimal materials, including locally sourced harvest gold limestone and poplar bark shingle siding wood. The addition includes an expansive family room with views of downtown Asheville, a cold plunge and sauna room overlooking the garden, a studio bedroom that doubles as a home office, indoor gym looking out toward the pool, and guest bedrooms and bathrooms with access to the pool and outdoor living area.

Raw polished concrete floors throughout balance the use of local limestone and native poplar bark veneer for a modern mountain aesthetic. Strategically placed lighting gives the feeling of natural light and plays against the dark exterior of the home to create a luminous calm interior.

The bold design plays with scale, proportion and chiaroscuro, with all-black powder room walls and light, airy indoor gathering spaces with large open windows to frame the views of the outdoor scenery and downtown Asheville, so occupants feel fully immersed in the outdoors. A collaborative design process resulted in a newly constructed addition that improves upon, rather than competes, with the existing building.

Project: Barnard House

Location: Ashville, NC

Area: 5,465 Square Feet

Architect: Studio Rodrigo Buelvas

Interior Design: Studio Rodrigo Buelvas

Visualization: Studio Rodrigo Buelvas