Cover image

Stretto House

Dallas, United States.

Sited adjacent to three ponds with existing dams, the house projects the character of the site through a series of concrete “spatial dams” with metal framed “aqueous space” flowing through them. Pouring over the dams, like the overlapping stretto in music, water reflects the landscape outside and the spaces overlapping inside. Bartok’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste has a materiality in instrumentation which the architecture approaches in light and space. Formed in four sections, the building consists of two modes: heavy orthogonal masonry and light, curvilinear metal. The main house is aqueous space: floor planes pull one space to the next, roof planes pull space over walls and an arched wall pulls light from a skylight. Materials continue the concept in poured concrete, cast glass in fluid shapes, slumped glass and liquid terrazzo.

Location
Dallas, United States.
Years
1989–1991
Size
7,500 sq ft
Status
Complete
architect
Steven Holl Architects
Steven Holl (design architect)
Adam Yarinsky (project architect)
Peter Lynch, Bryan Bell, Mathias Karlen, William Wilson, Stephen Cassell, Kent Hikida, Florian Schmidt, Tom Jenkinson, Lucinda Knox, Terry Surjan (project team)
local architect
Max Levy
structural consultant
Datum Engineering
mechanical consultant
Interfield Engineering
general contractor
Thomas S. Byrne Construction
landscape consultant
Kings Creek Landscaping

Timeline