The desing of the
Upcher House by
Bates Masi is a project for a writer and was a study in adaptability and re-use. The house was designed to be both spatially and economically efficient by coordinating the assembly of pre-manufactured components researched over the internet. It is essentially one large room with ancillary spaces that feed off it. The structure is an adjustable cantilevering rock system used in lumberyards. It is comprised of standard steel sizes with an assortment of brackets and arms that can be specified for any type of load or application. Bolted connections secure the steel arms and brackets to the steel columns.
From these appendoges cabinetry is hung, a fireplace mantel is suspended and handrails are applied. They also support the mahogany bookshelves walkway around the perimeter of the library. Prefabricated concrete foundation walls, formaldehyde free water-resistant fiber board, rough sawn akoume wood, aluminium windows, dyed concrete wall panels, pre-assembled wood screens, cabinets from IKEA and gabion retaining walls are the other elements that come together to form the house. The houses’s ability to be adapted and retrofitted, expanded or reduced allows for a mutiplicity of uses and to do so without waste is implicit in the design.
