brooks + scarpa: yin-yang house balances performance and aesthetics

‘yin-yang house’ by brooks + scarpa, venice, california, united statesimage © john lindenall images courtesy of brooks + scarpa

in a quiet neighborhood of venice, california, the yin-yang house gives it’s owners – an accomplished chef and his family – a dynamic living space strongly connected to the outdoors that has yet to produce an energy bill after almost a year of habitation.designed by local practice brooks + scarpa on a rectangular footprint, the solid exterior of the home that faces the street conceals a rather open series of spaces facing the private exterior gardens of the residence. open-air courtyards and verandas emphasize a space mace for entertaining various sizes of groups for a range of activities, with the large open kitchen at the heart of the project. bedrooms are kept relatively modest in terms of scale and detail, making them secondary functions to the larger social areas. the organization of the home is such that the different sections of the program can be compartmentalized and still contain the possibility of a visual connection. the kids can play outdoors while the parents watch comfortably from the inside; inversely the parents may host a group of people without disturbing the children in any way. the formal proportions of the construction play a significant role as well in the organization of volumes. two linear masses are stacked upon one another perpendicularly which forms between them the exterior spaces. in order to maintain a subtle scale, the steps leading up to the bedrooms are designed as an optical illusion, projecting the idea of a one-story home until a human scale is placed inside and the true dimensions are made evident.

apart from the successful design aesthetic and spatial development of the home, intelligent energy systems work together to create a net-zero construct that is proving to be entirely self sufficient. all the materials used are completely recycled, from the bamboo interiors to  the composite stone and tile counter tops. a green roof creates a small garden and benefits from natural insulation, whereas the rest of the house is insulated with high performance cellulose. a 12kW solar array, the largest made for residential purposes, provides all the energy requirements of the house and is arranged so that it also passively shades the bedrooms. large operable windows allow the spaces to be naturally ventilated and radiant heating efficiently controls the interior temperatures.

image © john linden

image © john linden

central courtyard open to the kitchenimage © john linden

view into the kitchen areaimage © john linden

stairs  leading to the bedroomsimage © john linden

shading roof with solar panelsimage © john linden

exterior veranda to the bedroomsimage © john linden

image © john linden

open dining areaimage © john linden

kitchen spaceimage © john linden

master bedroom and connecting hallwayimage © john linden

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project info:

total square footage: 4200 sq. ft.    total cost: $1.7 milcompleted: 2011architects: brooks + scarpa project team: lawrence scarpa, faia – lead designer, principal-in-charge; ching luk, senior designer, emily hodgdon, aiageneral contractor: glenn lyons construction        structural engineer: charles tanlandscape architect: z. freedman landscape designsolar panels: m & m solar