Group tea house
Made in collaboration with Reed Gerber + Michael Hoffman
The final step in the Wescott House design studio was to combine the individual models we created to develop a single design, which we proposed to Peter Bohlin at Wescott House in Springfield, Ohio. Our three individual proposals had a sense of path ending up in a final arrival. This became the central idea of our design, developing a path and sequence for the people interacting with our teahouse to follow around and arrive in the hut itself.
The path around our interior is suspended from the heavier structure in the central area of our hut by metal rods. The exterior of our building is one wrap made of 2x4 boards, with openings and breaks to focus on views and letting in sunlight to the interior. We also had a large door that opened outwards towards the center, creating an extension of space and a blending between exterior and interior space. The horizontality and deep cantilevers relate back to the Wescott House and the designs of Frank Lloyd Wright.