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Article from issue 2/1998 »Stairs«

House in Halifax, Canada

documentation p. 164 - 166
Architect Mackay-Lyons, Brian | Structural Engineer Campbell Comeau Engineering |

Drafts
Bottom osf stairs/Top of stairs/Section through balustrade 1:10
Elevation of stairs 1:50
Isometric of staircase (not to scale)
Upper floor plan/Ground floor plan 1:200

The closed north wall, with its enormous bookshelf element, forms the secure back of the house. The south face, in contrast, is opened up with large areas of glazing. The bathroom, kitchen and utility spaces are grouped into a core that forms a threshold between the more public areas and the intimate sleeping quarters. This distinction is continued externally, where the private and more public terraces are separated by the projecting bathroom block. On top of the bathroom is a balcony that affords a view over the “village green”. This hierarchy of spaces is underlined by locating an upper floor level over the core tract and the bedroom, while the living space is left open and extends up to the single-pitch roof. The steel staircase opposite the hearth block is conceived as a furnishing element. Externally, the house is clad with a single material – a triple layer of shingles that reflect the traditional local style. Only along the south front, where the extensive areas of glazing seem as if cut out of the façade, is the timber-frame construction revealed.