The exterior palette of the cabin was carefully chosen to change and grow with the landscape. Steel cladding and awning panels age and patina to earth tones. The concrete walls pick up tones of the rocks that emerge from the hillside of the site. The desire was for the cabin to age gracefully and appear like it has always been a part of the site. Whether in the dry summer months or deep in the snows of winter, Tinyleaf is able to merge itself into its surroundings.

A simple interior palette of concrete and wood ties together the space. Much like a ship’s cabin, the interior space is designed almost like a piece of cabinetry with clever and hidden storage solutions concealed out of sight. A small kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom are all designed to be as efficient as possible with shared storage volumes serving as a means to separate space. The bed is raised to allow for large draws to pull out for everyday items, concealed behind these fully movable draws is occasional storage that extends the full depth of the bed. Pull out side panels from the thickened wall that separates the kitchen and bathroom create pantry and utility storage for the main space and bathroom storage on the opposite side. A bookcase at the head of the bed creates a cozy corner for sitting and reading. Natural light enters the space both through the exterior glazing but also through a linear skylight that washes the rear wall of the cabin with light.

Text provided by the architect.

To address drastic temperature swings, strong North-South winds, maximize interior comfort and minimize energy consumption we placed the openings on the East and West facades achieving cross ventilation, optimal exposure to sun radiation and protection from dominant winds.

The insulation is outside the building envelope creating a continuous insulated volume, eliminating thermal bridges and allowing us to leave the structure exposed on the interior. The façade is a cedar rain screen treated with “Shou Sugi Ban”, a Japanese wood-charring technique that protects cedar from water, fire and insects and doesn’t require maintenance. The wood acquires an iridescent texture reflecting the light and colors through all seasons. Furthermore, the weathering of the façade tunes in with the surrounding landscape, constantly attuned with the woods.

Entering through the front door, the interior mimics the approach to the site: a narrow and long space with indirect light coming from the staircase (driveway) and comprising four bedrooms and three bathrooms in two stories; then it opens to a double height space (the clearing) containing living, dining, open kitchen and a studio. Throughout the building we alternate spans of 4’ to locate doors and windows, and 8’ to frame the views.

Three openings and two pitched roofs: The first large opening gives the master bedroom a bird’s eye view of the mountains. The other two large openings flank the double height space showing the mountains on the West and the treetops on the East. The experience of this space changes through the day and the four seasons, receiving natural light from different sides from sunrise to sunset and witnessing the radical change of the surrounding landscape. The material experience of the house-studio varies with the changes in light, leafiness and forest’s colors.

The building becomes a resonance box that intensifies the experience of the outdoors indoors: Its insertion into the site, its volumetry and its materiality express the site’s calling into matter.

Text provided by the architect.