Peter Rose + Partners

Surrounded by a beautiful landscape of extraordinary trees and views, the architects’ first impression of the 5-acre property was that it resembles a national park. The vistas reached beyond property lines, out into the surrounding St Louis area neighborhood. The landscape became the point of departure for the design, with the goal of maintaining and enhancing its natural beauty, as well as capturing the southern sunlight and lovely breezes. Located in a neighborhood that valued traditional design and designed for a couple with differing initial tastes – one with a traditional sensibility, and one with a contemporary one – the team was charged with creating a design that would both fit in the neighboring context and feel like home to both clients. Oriented to the south, the house is long and skinny, allowing for views and natural light from 3 sides of every room on the main floor. Beautiful steel windows open the corners of the house fully, blurring the line between inside and outside, inviting the landscape in. The level of craftsmanship in the house is extraordinary. The materials are both beautiful and performative – the Danish hand-made elongated brick and copper roof on the exterior will stand the test of time, the Dinesen wood floors were harvested with century-old sustainable forestry practices, the strikingly beautiful Shikkui plaster cleans the air.