Rau Haus by Feldman Structure sits on a Silicon Valley hillside

Wooden and cement wrap the outside of a hillside, household house designed by California studio Feldman Structure to really feel like a “area of serenity”.

The Rau Haus was constructed for a pair with a younger daughter that desired a extra spacious house after years of dwelling in dense San Francisco.

Feldman Structure designed a home in a city that overlooks California’s Silicon Valley

They discovered a property south of the town in Portola Valley, a city on the japanese facet of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

The purchasers enlisted San Francisco-based Feldman Structure to create a secluded, modern-style house that made the many of the environment and included a devoted space for internet hosting household and buddies.

Cutout in ceiling over kitchen
The house is clad in cement and wooden

“The staff’s imaginative and prescient centered round fully immersing guests in rolling inexperienced hills whereas providing a uncommon, distant glimpse of the San Francisco Bay to the north,” mentioned the studio.

L-shaped in plan, the home consists of two bars tucked right into a sloped web site and wrap an out of doors area within the rear. One bar is 2 ranges and runs north to south; the opposite is single storey and stretches east to west.

Living room with window out to pool
The house consists of two bars tucked into the hillside

“This challenge allowed us to craft an area of serenity, well-balanced with a design that creates horizontal and vertical connections inside and in direction of the panorama,” mentioned challenge principal Steven Stept of Feldman Structure.

The bars are clad in cement plaster and Monterey cypress – supplies chosen for being sturdy and low upkeep.

Kitchen with clerestory window and metal chandelier
The house has a sequence of strategically positioned home windows

Openings had been rigorously positioned to minimise views of surrounding properties and immerse occupants within the panorama.

“Gentle wells and clerestory home windows on the japanese facade welcome morning gentle and provide peeks of greenery with out compromising privateness,” the staff mentioned.

Stairway with clerestory windows
One of many bars has two storeys

The house totals 3,433 sq. ft (319 sq. metres) and encompasses a considerate division of private and non-private areas. The staff prioritised a connection to the outside and an “understated, fashionable and clear materiality”.

Within the north-south bar, the bottom degree holds the communal areas – a kitchen, eating space, front room and den, and a three-car storage.

Kitchen with view of outdoor wooden portion
The interiors are fashionable and understated

The higher portion comprises the first suite and two further bedrooms, together with a loft-style workplace overlooking the decrease flooring.

An outside “viewing deck” was positioned close to the first suite, atop the storage. From this elevated perch, one can catch views of the bay.

Fireplace with log sculpture
Wooden components had been included inside

“It was vital for the purchasers that this roof deck was publicly accessible with out compromising the privateness of their bed room,” the staff mentioned.

The house’s different bar encompasses visitor quarters, a household room and flex area. It’s oriented towards the yard, the place the staff created area for enjoying, exercising and entertaining.

An infinity pool serves as “a threshold the place the manicured panorama merges into the native meadow-scape”.

Total, the home has the character of a nature retreat whereas permitting for full-time use.

“The home embraces the spirit of the positioning and units the stage for each day life to unfold,” mentioned challenge architect Anjali Iyer.

Infnity pool with forest in background
An infinity pool serves as a “threshold” between the home and the pure surroundings

Based in 2003, Feldman Structure has designed quite a few residential tasks in California and past.

Others embrace the renovation of a “quirky round home” perched on a hillside close to Silicon Valley and a weekend home in California’s wine nation that has light-filled areas that spill open air.

The pictures is by Adam Rouse.


Challenge credit:

Architect: Feldman Structure
Structure staff:  Steven Stept (challenge principal), Anjali Iyer (challenge architect), Leila Bijan Kuehr (senior designer), Humbeen Geo (designer)
Inside designer: FQ Designs
Panorama design: Thuilot Associates
Basic contractor: NorthWall Builders
Lighting design: Tucci Lighting
Structural engineer: ZFA Engineers
Civil engineer: Lea & Braze Engineering
MEP: Philip Neumann Vitality Design