Modern design

This urban Montessori school serving children PK3-3rd grade has a new home in a repurposed warehouse through a two-phase improvement program design by StudioMB. Utilizing Montessori School Design principles defined by our firm and featured by National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector, Breakthrough Montessori is a testament to the ability to bring high-performance Montessori education to a public school system. Application of our principles transformed dark, underlit spaces into sun-filled, cheery classrooms with visual and literal connections to the exterior. More

Containers are multifaceted; a strong symbol of a logistics company and a celebrator of sustainable architecture. Its modular construct naturally allowed us to use 4 containers to create 6 different spaces as a marketing suite for Goodman, with the flexibility to adapt to an evolving site. We maximised the opportunity to have extensive glass openings, which allows potential clients to have an overview of the surrounds. The layering of timber and glass softens the features of an inherently industrial product, establishing harmony amongst nature whilst bringing in light and tropical backdrops into the space. At the end, the build can be collapsed and transported, leaving minimal imprint on the original landscape.   Material Used: 1. S... More

Located at the highpoint of a family ranch south of San Antonio, this home is designed to function as a stairway to the treetops. Elevating the primary living space above the dense surrounding woods will allow the family to enjoy abundant air, light, and uninterrupted views spanning 14 miles. Native stone walls ground the home to its site, provide structure for the lighter three-story steel and wood program above, and create entry and entertaining spaces. Guests arrive to a central dog run porch flanked on both sides by a natural courtyard that offers vertical circulation to living areas above. With two levels of living area above and a fourth floor perch that functions as an outdoor living room, each space captures a different experience... More

Flanking 30 acres of Syrah vineyard along the Santa Lucia Range this simple wood-skinned barn houses vineyard farming equipment, grape picking bins, tool storage and an open-air workshop area. An off the grid structure, roof mounted crystalline PV modules recharge a battery bank located in the barn. The vineyard manager and occasional guests experience the Coastal Live Oak filled woods to the east and the vineyard on the west.  Materials are selected for their simple elegance and long-term durability. Ebonized cedar siding and weathering steel clad the building skin. Interior spaces are paneled with raw plywood and are contrasted with painted cabinetry. Clayton Korte Clayton Korte Clayton Korte Clayton Korte More

Adjacent to award-winning Winery and Tasting Room structures that maintain the spirit of buildings that are subservient to the landscape, the new Cased Goods and Administrative building expands on the village concept at a historic winery along California’s Central Coast. Situated to the north of the recently completed Tasting and Hospitality Building, the Cased Goods warehouse stores 40,000 cases and nestles itself into the base of the hill, while admin and hospitality storage program flank the length of the building. Via a north-facing sawtooth roof assembly, the warehouse is predominantly daylit with natural light. The south-facing sawtooth roofs provide an armature for roof mounted PV modules. Administrative building takes cues f... More

Located 12 miles from the Pacific Ocean along California’s Central Coast, is the home for a new Wine Library to join the award-winning winery and tasting room structures that maintain the spirit of agrarian structures that are subservient to the landscape. Stealthily positioned to the south of the recently completed Tasting and Hospitality Building, the cut-and-cover storage program buries itself below a vegetated roof of native grasses to seamlessly blend into the bank of the hill. Screened from the road above, the building connects to the Tasting Room terrace via a gentle path where board-formed concrete retaining walls provide an exclusive and revealing entry. The 20,000 bottle library relies predominantly on passive cooling with... More

The Helibarn Studio out-building is located in Montana. The structure includes a guest studio, garage and helicopter/equipment hanger.  The project is located on axis from the helicopter approach as suggested by experienced pilot consultants. The project buries itself into the hillside, diminishing the scale from the garage / drive approach. Conceptually the helicopter hanger ‘grounds’ itself like a rock while the upper level / lower garage share a continuous roof with overhangs that ‘lift-off or float’. The glass tower elevation is meant to act as a light beacon upon aerial approach and to assist with navigation and landing. The lines and materials of the building are interpretations of the utilitarian equipme... More

Charming cottage style in the front. Cool modern multi-level design in the back. Boutique firm, John Lum Architecture, renovated this 4500-sf family house, located in San Francisco, to maximize views while preserving the architectural integrity of the neighborhood. An engineering masterpiece, the house was rebuilt from the foundation up to encompass 5 bedrooms and 5 baths. To keep with the area’s vernacular, the front facade features an A-frame pitched roof, appropriate of the neighboring houses that line this tree-lined street. A modern silhouette and exposed steel beams frame backyard views. Tiered levels balance the indoors with the out with multiple terraces complementing the California indoor outdoor lifestyle. Peppered with gene... More

Melbourne has a thing with axes – how often have you glanced down one of the mains arteries of the city and realized it perfectly frames a civic monument? Taking inspiration from that axial idea, this tall residential tower, positioned above the intersection of the off-set Hoddle and Carlton grids, echoes this geometric tension in its facetted planes that stretch up into the sky.Intersecting vertical fingers of descending pink and rising green glass, separated by a dividing silver hue, create a shimmering dichroic effect through the height of the façade. Inspired by the ambiguity of Escher, this creates a dramatic vertical transition evocative of the transition of solid, through liquid to vapour.Facing Victoria Street, a three-... More

This modernist brick home built in 1979 stands in playful contrast to its neighboring historic row homes. The new owners wanted a total renovation with an open floor plan filled with natural light as well as a new third floor addition with a master suite, spa-like bathroom, and sundeck. Program requirements included five bedrooms, contemporary kitchen, children’s play space, media room and ample space for art.   The objective of new design becomes clear upon entry to the home–capturing sunlight. Unique for a city lot, the footprint of the house repeatedly steps back from the south property line, forgoing square-footage for views of the sun and sky. To maximize use of space, every inch was carefully considered. For example... More

Set on a wooded lot above the Fox River, this contemporary home quietly attracts attention while blending into its surroundings. The owners, a couple with three children, wanted a home that promotes family interaction and outdoor living in this sportsman’s paradise. The design direction was to create a floor plan that maximizes views with common spaces generously sized for family gatherings and entertainment. Program requirements include a great room, library, mud room accessible from the second floor by a fireman’s pole, lap pool with integrated hot tub, boat house with guest suite, and a zip line from the main house to the boat house.The design is driven by the site, allowing each room to have expansive views of the landscape. The main li... More

If meaningful design is about the essence of things and eventually about reduction, this bungalow is a distinctive statement on a 2000 square yard’s block. This house typically stands as a tribute to the 70s Indian modernism and is a masterpiece because of its exemplary style and beauty. It is  an extremely interactive home for a close knit joint family, the one that cooks & dines together. The architecture of this house is such that the space embraces their roots and is progressive at the same time. The experience in plan & section is that of an open space, but, that space has been planned in a way that it is interactive yet offers privacy.   The components at site are completely acquired from or around the area a... More

Hilton Astana is a brand new hotel within a new social and community-driven part of the city – the futuristic exhibition complex Astana EXPO 2017. The idea was to create a hotel as a place of cultural significance with a traditional approach to luxury hotel design, using generous proportions and spectacular views to make the hotel an icon within the cityscape. INK Architects Kazakhstan architecture and design company developed the project in the ultimate short period - 90 days.The hotel design inspired by a place unique nature and cultural heritage. The conceptual basis involves three key elements: nature, culture, and history of Central Kazakhstan. One of the dominant symbols of the city is a golden stalk of wheat, which represents i... More

AUTO-haus is a full renovation and addition of a one-story garage, constructed in the 1800’s and located in a historic Washington DC alley. While the clients, a young couple, are true urban dwellers who primarily bike and walk, they collect classic BMW’s and enjoy working on them. This project merges their favorite hobby with their new living space. It also preserves the original garage structure, including all steel beams, brick party walls, and first floor brick façade, with the bricked-up garage door opening restored to its original size.   Two facades were created: the Garage façade at the alley edge is shared by people and cars, so visitors view the cars displayed as they pass through. The House fa&cced... More