The San Francisco Bay plays a strong role in this addition to a 1917 Arts and Crafts home. The judges even commented that the water was like a “second room.” “The back is fantastic,” they said. “It plays off the bay.” The owner, a glass artist, requested a seamless addition that integrated natural light and updated the home while maintaining the original Arts and Crafts details. He also wanted a way to showcase his decorative glass work.
Architect Phil Rossington and colleague Alice Roche designed a two-story addition with a family room and master suite. The zero lot line condition fueled a need to open the center of the home; and Rossington and Roche designed an inner courtyard that brings in light and smoothly connects indoors and out. Even at night there's light —the courtyard, accessible from the dining and kitchen area, has a glass block floor that is lit from the music room below.
Wall niches accommodate the owner's artwork, and in the kitchen a playful Mondrian-inspired design of glass tiles acts as a backsplash. The judges liked the backsplash detail as well as the exposed rafters and colors. They noted that “the construction detailing,” which was done by A. Murphy Construction and overseen by foreman Conor Pullman, “is well thought out.”
Category: Addition, over $250,000
Location:
San Francisco
Contractor:
Anthony Murphy, A. Murphy Construction, Point Richmond, Calif.
Designer: Phil Rossington, Rossington Architecture, San Francisco
