by Sarah Susanka,AIA
Architects are magicians of space,light and order. A best-selling author and architect reveals the secrets to creating the illusive qualities of home that all Americans crave.
When my first book was published,The Not So Big House,no one expected that a book about house design would be the best selling non-fiction title for three months running. And it was unheard of that a book about house design would go on to sell over three quarters of a million copies!
What was this nerve that the book had touched with so many Americans? As it turns out,it is the same quality that builders,remodelers,interior designers and residential architects all strive to create,but which turns out to be somewhat illusive,in the products we turn out – a sense of home. American homebuyers crave comfortable houses that give some respite from the frantic pace of their busy lives. So often I heard from clients that the elegant formal spaces central to so many new homes were largely unused.
They built them only for resale,while they spent their time in the more informal spaces – the kitchen and family room. Huge sections of the average house sit vacant,waiting for the “formal” guests who never arrive,and so much money is spent on these spaces,there’s little left in the budget to make the spaces that are used everyday really sing. Comfort,I have learned,has little to do with how big a space is. It is attained,rather,by tailoring our houses to fit the way we really live,and to match the scale and proportions of our human form. By spending more on crafting everyday spaces,and by eliminating the rooms we rarely use,a house can be a true inspiration,a place friends and family will love to visit,because it embodies the qualities of home.
From a marketing perspective,such a “build better,not bigger” design approach proves especially compelling to the segment identified as “cultural creatives” by Paul H. Ray,Ph.D and Sherry Ruth Anderson,Ph.D. In their book by the same title,Ray and Anderson describe a segment of well-educated buyers,some 50-million strong who are dedicated to homes and lifestyles that reflect social responsibility,ethical values and quality.
The Architect’s Toolbox
The book Home By Design sets out to define the characteristics of home,and in so doing,open the possibility for greater dialogue between homebuilding professionals and their customers. I have done this by revealing the architect’s toolbox – key principles of space,light and order inherent to successful residential design.
When you peel away the particular style of a house,there are principles that underlie the surface treatments. These principles relate directly to certain natural,physiological instincts that govern the way we relate to our environments. In the explanations that follow,you’ll get a sneak preview of seven of the 27 principles of space,light and order that are covered in detail in the upcoming book and the show house.
By spending more on everyday spaces and giving homebuyers the comforts of home they crave,you can create a better relationship with your buyers. Try it!
PRINCIPLE 1:ENTERING Location:Front entryway
When we think of entering a house,we’ll typically picture the front door in our mind’s eye,but in fact there’s much more to it. Entering is a process,a series of experiences that you move through as you go from outside to inside. The front door is simply the membrane between the two. So designing an entryway includes not only the doorway,but also the series of places you pass through as you move from the street or driveway to the front stoop,and on into the house. We are most aware of this principle when it is ignored— when there’s no cover over the door,no landing,and no windows at the front door to let visitors know that someone has heard their arrival. With wide overhangs,a house will reach out towards guests giving them a sense of shelter even before the door is opened. The end result is a welcoming transition between the public and private realms,and sets the stage for a positive experience of the rest of the house. |
PRINCIPLE 2:SEQUENCE OF PLACES Location:Central Hallway
Instead of conceiving of a house as a series of rooms,it’s more useful to think of it as a sequence of places in which the various daily activities of the household can occur. Each place needs its own definition to distinguish it from adjacent places,but each is also linked to the next by a view or entrance. A front door that opens onto a connecting hallway will provide access and a clear view of the linear sequence of places opening to either side of the central axis. Each space is clearly defined by variations in ceiling height,rather than with walls. Dropped soffits and floating lattices indicate the boundaries between activity places without obstructing views from one place to the next. Such a home has an open feel,while retaining a sense of shelter around each activity place. |
PRINCIPLE 3:SHELTER AROUND ACTIVITY Location:Kitchen
Many homes today have lots of square footage and volume,but very little sense of shelter for the various activities that take place inside. But a sense of shelter is fundamental to the feeling of home. One of the easiest ways to achieve this is to sculpt the ceiling’s shape. A cherry lattice defines the edge of the kitchen,while a two-foot-deep continuous dropped soffit around the tops of all the wall cabinets protects the work surface below. The experience when working at such a counter is similar to that of wearing a wide brimmed hat. You feel protected,and consequently,more comfortable as you work. |
PRINCIPLE 4:POINT OF FOCUS Location:Stairway
Every room,even an open hallway,benefits greatly from the creation of a focal point to attract attention,and give significance to a particular area. A point of focus can be as simple as a favorite piece of art at the center of the main living space. Or it can be more elaborate,like an inglenook around a beautifully designed fireplace,or a composition of windows looking into the garden beyond. An example is selecting a point of focus on a stairway. Use a pin-spot light to draw attention to the point of focus,and the lattice wall and lowered ceiling can further accentuate the spot. In this instance,all these elements serve to draw you toward the stairway,bringing added vitality to the experience of moving through the house. |
PRINCIPLE 5:REFLECTING SURFACES Location:Master closet
Every light colored wall and ceiling can be thought of as a potential reflecting surface. Light strikes the surface and bounces deeper into the space. When a window,skylight,or light fixture is located directly adjacent to a perpendicular wall or ceiling,it’s as though the surface becomes part of the light source,reflecting a maximum amount of light available into the living space. Two different reflecting surfaces can help make a narrow dressing alcove seem more spacious than it actually is. A mirror can double limited space. Use recessed light fixtures to increase the light level throughout the area as well as adding depth to the space. |
PRINCIPLE 6:INSIDE-OUTSIDE Location:Porch
Houses should fit into their environment,not sit on the site as though they just landed from outer space. By conceiving of the house and the surrounding landscape as a single,integrated whole,rather than as two separate environments,a home can provide a constant interplay between the natural and man-made worlds. One of the most effective ways to connect inside and out is to blur the distinction between the two. Creating a room enclosed only by the most minimal of visual membranes can go a long way to obscuring the distinction between in and out. If the ceiling surfaces and floor are the same on either side of the window membrane,the connection is dramatically enhanced. |
PRINCIPLE 7:THEME AND VARIATION Location:Exterior elevation
In classical music,a melody typically recurs throughout the piece,differing slightly with each iteration,but still recognizably based on the same theme. This works in architecture,too. An arched form can occur in a number of places,becoming one of the predominant themes. Although you might not notice it until someone points it out,the recurring form gives the home an order and identity all its own. A theme and variations can take the form of any pattern,repeated material,color or shape,but when it is part of an archetypal form,like a circle or square,it also subliminally connects the home to the larger order of the universe. |
Sara Susanka,AIA,author of The Not So Big House,Creating the Not So Big House,Not So Big Solutions for Your Home,andHome by Design:Transforming Your House Into a Home,is a registered architect and a member of the American Institute of Architects. She writes a regular column,“Not So Big Solutions,”for Taunton Press’s magazine Inspired House,and she is a contributing editor for Fine Homebuilding. She lives and works in Raleigh,NC.
Originally published in NAHB’s Sales + Marketing Ideas magazine. ©2004.
Excellent blogpost!! Very informative… Looking for more posts like this!! Keep you the goodwork!