Carol’s most recent design is a collaboration with her mechanical engineer husband, Fred Berg. Their residence, known as the Ross Street House, was recognized as Wisconsin’s first LEED for Homes Platinum rated residence in July 2009. The home has captured the attention of green enthusiasts throughout the country for far exceeding the requirements to achieve the highest LEED rating of Platinum.

Carol Richard, founding partner of the Atlanta-based architecture firm Richard Wittschiebe Hand, returned home to Madison, Wisconsin last summer to build her house. “When I was a young architect,” says Carol, “I designed and built a house for myself in Atlanta and I’ve always wanted to build again and take advantage of the things I’ve learned over my career.”
Diagrams, drawings, photographs, detailed design information and energy use analysis can be found on the website: www.rossstreethouse.com.

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This is the studio of artist Gary Faigin, Perched on the border between Ballard and Phinney Ridge, the Belyea Faigin residence works hard. home for Gary, his wife Pamela Belyea and their two children and the site of social and business gatherings centered around the Gage Academy of Art that Pamela and Gary direct. Their 1936 bungalow sits in the back seat and a new three story, 1600 SF addition is in the driver’s seat. The lowest level is Gary’s studio, the middle level is the living/dining room and the top floor is a new master suite. The interface between the original structure and the addition is expressed in the glassy gasket between the two buildings.

Studio House Design of artist Gary Faigin by Johnston Architects

The original beveled siding slides from outside to inside marking the transition between old and new. The new portion is emphatically modern in its use of materials, structure and detail but the gable roof and areas of wood siding make it sympathetic to the character of the old house. The straightforward design direction was set by the need to economize and dictated the use of exposed truss-joist framing, simple forms, aluminum windows and sleek but modest finishes. Vivid paint colors and walls full of art enliven the rooms. This addition has allowed a busy family to work, entertain and live more efficiently and comfortably in a neighborhood they love. And the views aren’t bad either!

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Coffou Cottage in Michigan City, Indiana, USA, was designed by Chicago-based Brininstool + Lynch with a simple structural system, and was enhanced by a horizontal wood rain screen of Western Red Cedar to privatize the entry sequence on the North, and a wall of operable glass on the South.

For decades the woods and fields of Southwestern Michigan and Northwestern Indiana, with their close proximity to Lake Michigan and short travel distance from the city, have offered Chicagoans weekend reprieves from urban intensity. The owners of this cottage sought to gain a sense of privacy with their vacation property, and preferred the experience of pastoral views to the natural landscape over views to the lake waters. They were fortunate to find the land that fit their aesthetic aspirations, and subsequently desired a home that would meet their modern concept for living.

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