PROGRAM: Rural villa for the president of Corning Glass, with an emphasis on glass as a material.
SITE: On a hill overlooking Corning, NY, enclosed by an L-shaped grove of trees that orients the site towards the city.CONCEPTS: The choice of clear glazing on all sides of the house leads to a design that relies on spatial and formal organization to manipulate light, view, and experience rather than on material opacity. The program was subdivided into three elements of housing, private, public, and semipublic. The private, bedrooms, bathrooms, storage etc, was recessed with the downhill side retaining views to the city. This creates a primordial sense of comfort and enclosure and a sense of privacy without the use of opaque materials. Entry into the private spaces is a ceremonial descent to the level below grade to register this idea. The public spaces, dining and living are located in a middle zone between the grounded private spaces and the floating semi-private spaces. This zone uses the semi-private spaces as a protective canopy but is more open to views, sunlight, and direct public access. The semi-private spaces, meant for the president of a large corporate company, include a boardroom, office spaces, a gallery, and a lounge. They occupy the canopy and are elevated 25’ above the ground for panoramic views from the house, displaying to guests and clients the president’s prominence. The site raised level allows view of Corning, registering the company’s importance in the community.
SITE: On a hill overlooking Corning, NY, enclosed by an L-shaped grove of trees that orients the site towards the city.CONCEPTS: The choice of clear glazing on all sides of the house leads to a design that relies on spatial and formal organization to manipulate light, view, and experience rather than on material opacity. The program was subdivided into three elements of housing, private, public, and semipublic. The private, bedrooms, bathrooms, storage etc, was recessed with the downhill side retaining views to the city. This creates a primordial sense of comfort and enclosure and a sense of privacy without the use of opaque materials. Entry into the private spaces is a ceremonial descent to the level below grade to register this idea. The public spaces, dining and living are located in a middle zone between the grounded private spaces and the floating semi-private spaces. This zone uses the semi-private spaces as a protective canopy but is more open to views, sunlight, and direct public access. The semi-private spaces, meant for the president of a large corporate company, include a boardroom, office spaces, a gallery, and a lounge. They occupy the canopy and are elevated 25’ above the ground for panoramic views from the house, displaying to guests and clients the president’s prominence. The site raised level allows view of Corning, registering the company’s importance in the community.
