At-Six Architecture prefers to build out rather than up when adding an addition to a house. The homeowners don't have to move out during construction, old framing and construction don't have to be reinforced, and the new addition can be totally separate from the original house. San Francisco architects Jason Langkammerer and John Barone also like to make the addition striking, as in the case of this West Berkeley home...
The 1940s Spanish Revival home now has a modern two-story 900-square foot tower sitting behind it. It includes a translucent polycarbonate stair wall that absorbs light and heat.
• Zahid Sardar's article is here: Two's the Charm
Images: Adrian Gregorutti
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Comments (3)
I'm in love with the built-in storage/dressing area on the other side of that polycarbonate wall:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/11/15/HO7R141TB6.DTL&o=5
I agree with the practical reasons for building out rather than up, but . . . there's not much harmony here. The two chunks of this house don't resonate together.
Umm...that looks horrible. Like somebody just dropped the other building in the back and left it there.
It's blocking access to sunlight to the other house.
It looks like a Tetris piece that's out of place.