When multiple schemes to enlarge the existing ranch house on this parcel exceeded the project budget, this frugal scheme for a new outbuilding showed promise. Cantilevers on opposing end-walls create a 30x24 second floor studio suite above a 22x24 garage. Entry, service spaces, and a napping nook tuck under the shed roof’s low side, and the studio proper fills the high side.

 

The second floor is designed for immediate use as an art studio, and later use as an accessory dwelling. An interior trellis carries lighting and supports banners for a celebration while a tab and slot system allows several increments of adjustment within the B-C plywood bookcases.

 

A deep overhang shelters the studio’s entry stair and small balcony, and helps to shape the outdoor space between the outbuilding and the main house. From the deck, a broad and gentle stair serves as bleacher seats for driveway sports and activities. Steel angles reinforce PSL columns to suspend the balcony. Tension rods provide and express lateral bracing for the tall walls. Plywood sheathing reinforces the long clear-span roof and black locust decking turns vertically to create discretion at the studio’s entry stair.

 

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Studio InSitu Architects, Inc: Tim Hess, Joshua LaLiberte, Nick King
Builder: JC Alternative Construction Joao Carlos DeOliviera
Structural Engineer: Consulting Structural Engineer, Inc. Brian Walsh, PE

Civil Engineer: Lakeview Engineering Steven Poole

Cabinet Maker: Peck Construction Corey Peck
Photography: Studio InSitu