Contemporary Split-level Exterior Design Ideas
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ODS ArchitectureIn the hills of San Anselmo in Marin County, this 5,000 square foot existing multi-story home was enlarged to 6,000 square feet with a new dance studio addition with new master bedroom suite and sitting room for evening entertainment and morning coffee. Sited on a steep hillside one acre lot, the back yard was unusable. New concrete retaining walls and planters were designed to create outdoor play and lounging areas with stairs that cascade down the hill forming a wrap-around walkway. The goal was to make the new addition integrate the disparate design elements of the house and calm it down visually. The scope was not to change everything, just the rear façade and some of the side facades.
The new addition is a long rectangular space inserted into the rear of the building with new up-swooping roof that ties everything together. Clad in red cedar, the exterior reflects the relaxed nature of the one acre wooded hillside site. Fleetwood windows and wood patterned tile complete the exterior color material palate.
The sitting room overlooks a new patio area off of the children’s playroom and features a butt glazed corner window providing views filtered through a grove of bay laurel trees. Inside is a television viewing area with wetbar off to the side that can be closed off with a concealed pocket door to the master bedroom. The bedroom was situated to take advantage of these views of the rear yard and the bed faces a stone tile wall with recessed skylight above. The master bath, a driving force for the project, is large enough to allow both of them to occupy and use at the same time.
The new dance studio and gym was inspired for their two daughters and has become a facility for the whole family. All glass, mirrors and space with cushioned wood sports flooring, views to the new level outdoor area and tree covered side yard make for a dramatic turnaround for a home with little play or usable outdoor space previously.
Photo Credit: Paul Dyer Photography.
![[Bracketed Space] House](https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/pictures/exteriors/bracketed-space-house-mf-architecture-img~7f110a4c07d2cecd_5921-1-b9e964f-w360-h360-b0-p0.jpg)
Matt Fajkus ArchitectureThe site descends from the street and is privileged with dynamic natural views toward a creek below and beyond. To incorporate the existing landscape into the daily life of the residents, the house steps down to the natural topography. A continuous and jogging retaining wall from outside to inside embeds the structure below natural grade at the front with flush transitions at its rear facade. All indoor spaces open up to a central courtyard which terraces down to the tree canopy, creating a readily visible and occupiable transitional space between man-made and nature.
The courtyard scheme is simplified by two wings representing common and private zones - connected by a glass dining “bridge." This transparent volume also visually connects the front yard to the courtyard, clearing for the prospect view, while maintaining a subdued street presence. The staircase acts as a vertical “knuckle,” mediating shifting wing angles while contrasting the predominant horizontality of the house.
Crips materiality and detailing, deep roof overhangs, and the one-and-half story wall at the rear further enhance the connection between outdoors and indoors, providing nuanced natural lighting throughout and a meaningful framed procession through the property.
Photography
Spaces and Faces Photography
Yvonne Svensson Architectural ServicesMid century style to front elevation of a tri- split level home on steep block in the Adelaide Hills.
Hebel power panel walls, rendered finish with James Hardie Linea Weatherboard above. Colorbond skillon roof taking advantage of North Orientation for future array of solar panels
All-City Masonry Staining LLCWe stained the mortar to a light white - grey, with a three color grey blend brick. Then we stained the stone white with a grey accent.
Christopher Balke
Rhodes Architecture + LightWingspan adjoins a community park, opening to an eastern entry court, southern recreation/gardening court, and park greenspace to the west. The house is organized on five half-levels set effortlessly around a central atrium/stair lightwell, dividing the spaces inside horizontally + vertically. Playful roofs and forms reflect one of the owner’s mid-century modern boyhood homes. Work, play, guest + community, and sleeping spaces for a family of five focus on gathering and orienting toward views, landscaped courts, and a glass and steel circulation core.
Tiny House CompanyA freshly planted garden is now starting to take off. By the end of summer the house should feel properly integrated into the existing site and garden.
Contemporary Split-level Exterior Design Ideas
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