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50 Years Later – a Home for an Artist

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Gary Gladwish Architecture designed this sustainable home for an artist in Orcas Island, Washington.

54 years ago she visited the island and decided that one day she would live there.

All her life, the artist had been working with rocks, nature and landscape.

Populated with madrone trees, firs, beech, thistle, moss and rocks with magnificent views to the west, the site of her future dream home had remained un-built over 40 years.

The architects selected a material palette to incorporate some of her favorite materials like rusty steel siding and moss and rocks from the building site.

The entry walk utilizes a favorite rustic wood recycled from a 100 year old barn.

The house is entered at the pivot point of its L-Shape.

An art studio and storage area provides the flexibility to add bedrooms or an apartment in the future.

The simple L-Shape plan centers around an open plan living/dining cooking area with a study and bedroom on one wing.

The house is designed for ease of movement for the artist to age in place – without stairs and encumbrances.

This design will accommodate the inevitable bad hips, knees and back worn out from a lifetime of moving rocks, dirt and plants.

Double insulated windows and doors surpass energy code requirements and all of the lighting is either LED or CFL.

With its construction in honest natural stone the bathroom is both modest and sensuous.

Around the long side of the L-Shape, large doors slide away to open the house to the expansive views.

The achitects have fulfilled a long time dream – a true living room in the woods.