Archello Awards · Winners Announced
Archello Awards 2024 · Winners Announced
Archello Awards 2024
Winners Announced
High Prairie Residence
Lara Swimmer
Product Spec Sheet

ElementBrandProduct Name
Kitchen countertopsCaesarstone
Windows & DoorsAndersen Windows
E-Series windows & patio doors
TileStatements Tile
Metro
Weathering steel roof Taylor Metals
Rusteel Plus
Kitchen rangeSub-Zero/Wolf
340 gas stoveJotul

Product Spec Sheet
Kitchen countertops
Windows & Doors
E-Series windows & patio doors by Andersen Windows
Tile
Metro by Statements Tile
Weathering steel roof
Rusteel Plus by Taylor Metals
Kitchen range
340 gas stove
by Jotul

A little blip on the hill

EB Architecture + Design as Architects

A short brief we repeated to ourselves and our lovely clients, about how we envisioned their getaway residence in the rural community of High Prairie, in Lyle, Washington. Responding to and doing its best to be a quiet addition in its massive 120-acre landscape.

photo_credit Lara Swimmer
Lara Swimmer

Tucked into a gentle hillside, about 15 miles north of the Columbia Gorge,this modest getaway residence offers a simple comfort in response to its dramatic setting. Sited at the edge of the site’s own oak forest, the house uses these trees and the slope of the hillside for protection against the often-harsh winds and weather, while expanding outward toward views of the distant volcanic peaks of the Cascade Range. Every aspect of the house, from its siting, its geometry, its arrangement of rooms and privacy, to its treatment of light, structure, and materials—is governed by these two priorities.

photo_credit Lara Swimmer
Lara Swimmer

As such, the spaces and materials of the house celebrate honest durability, doing nothing extra in deference to the natural drama of the surroundings. The residence is only doing what it needs to do. Public and private separation is defined by a central site-cast concrete wall in this modest 2 bar plan. A covered communal outdoor space and the main entry court form voids which balance the solidity of the adjacent master and guest bedroom suites. On one side of the wall, the master suite steps down from the main level, conforming to the existing topography to become a private sanctuary with windows on all sides taking in the view. The other side of the wall leads to two guest bedrooms and a shared bath, nestled into the hillside in a self-contained suite.

photo_credit Lara Swimmer
Lara Swimmer

The building exterior is clad in ground face CMU and sheltered by a weathering steel roof — a nod to the agricultural language of the surrounding area, and in response to our clients concerns for longevity, permanence, and minimal maintenance. Two site walls extend from the house’s southwestern faceinto the topography. Stretching out, these walls anchor the house into the landscape and provide extra protection from the unchallenged prevailing winds. A detached garage, completely clad in weathering steel, purposely sited a short walk from the house, slides into the trees, melding into the landscape.

photo_credit Lara Swimmer
Lara Swimmer

Material Used :
1. Facade cladding: Ground face CMU block veneer – “Natural” / Willamette Graystone 
2. Flooring: Ground/exposed aggregate concrete floors
3. Doors: Anderson Eagle Series exterior doors
4. Windows: Anderson Eagle Series windows 
5. Roofing: Weathering steel roof / Rusteel Plus / Taylor Metal Products

6. Interior finishes:  
Tile: “Metro” subway tile / Statements Tile & Stone
Kitchen countertops:  “Empira White”  / Caesarstone / 
Maple butcher block / Crosscut Hardwoods
Interior / Exterior wood ceiling – 1 x 4 tight knot cedar 
Jotul 340 gas stove
Wolf kitchen range / Liebherr refrigerator 
Specialty lighting: Rejuvenation Lighting, Portland, OR

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