Plus he’s already completed and designed some stellar work. Some of it nicely offbeat – but still livable. If you recall, this is my favorite sort of offbeat structure, “Zany and livable.”

Thewes sent me some info on a structure he built, the Elkins Addition. This addition is a bathroom and studio built onto the back of an already existing home in Nashville. It’s a super slick studio, I think. It’s got a very zig-zag sort of charm, as you can see…

Nice, right? I really like the contrasting color shades. At first it seemed a little off – but, the more I look at it, the more I like it. It works.

Everywhere you look a new line…

I saved the best for last. It’s killer at night.

How cool is this addition in the night? Well, maybe not cool if you’re the next door neighbors. But neighbors aside it’s great. Plus, you know, the light almost seems contained by the building. It doesn’t look like it spreads far – which I know makes no sense. I only slept three hours last night, that’s the best sense I can make.

Why not visit Ryan Thewes’ site; he’s got some nicely unique designs to ponder. I especially recommend the Octagon House, not offbeat but very well-done minimalist style, or the Bow House, which I’m thinking kids would love to play under.

[Much thanks to Ryan Thewes for the photos]

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Elkins Addition from Ryan Thewes

From Mass Studies Architects:

“This proposal is an attempt to incorporate as much nature as possible into the building within the constraints of a low-elevation, high-density urban environment of limited space. The building defines its relationship between natural/artificial and interior/exterior as an amalgamation, rather than a confrontation.

The outside building material is primarily a geotextile planted with a herbaceous perennial to form a living façade, while the other three sides that face bamboo borders are clad in steel sheets are finished with propylene resin.”

How cool. Seriously. Well, I do sort of wonder if you have to water the building, or if it’s a low-water perennial, or maybe the rain takes care of it. Hmmm. They extended the outer sheath of green to stairways, which is my favorite part of the structure:

To see many more brilliant photos of this amazing building visit Contemporist.

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Ann Demeulemeester Shop in Seoul

Bloomframe is an add-on balcony. The first Bloomframes will, according to designers/architects, Hofman Dujardin, be available early this year. You can add Bloomframe to a new or existing building. I don’t think a plain old balcony is scary. I mean, anyone can add a balcony on sure. Here’s the thing. This balcony folds right up.

The designer’s website, notes that, safety tests will be run (of course), but I just can’t say I’d feel all that safe with my fold-out balcony, say, 40 stories up.

For those not interested in folding balconies, Hofman Dujardin has other cool structures to see like their Bohebitat, still in the pre-planning stages, but neat none-the-less.

Check out the kooky window arrangement.

I like cartoon looking structures. This one is way fun. It will be black too (black brick actually) which you don’t often see.

Anyone brave enough to try an add-on balcony that folds right up?

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Scary Offbeat Home Addition

The most interesting impractical item to see is Specht Harpman’s Psychoplex; which is as odd as it sounds.

This Psychoplex is an imaginary theme park. The University of Texas at Austin has a newsletter bit about Psychoplex that puts what’s going on here into context. During a presentation of their work in the first Austin-based Pecha Kucha program back in May of this year, “Architects Louise Harpman and Scott Specht gave an amazing and entertaining presentation, with Louise Harpman showing their work as the straight man of the duo, and Scott Specht following up with a hilarious introduction to a fantasy theme park called Psychoplex. Their presentation was truly in the spirit of Pecha Kucha–a little bit serious, a little bit pure entertainment and chaotic. The crowd went wild.”

I like fun architects.

I’m glad I saw this newsletter because I was stuck for a bit trying to figure out if this was real or not. I did assume not real once I read some of the descriptions from the Psychoplex tour such as:

“The Psychoplex is the product of a collaboration between a deluded, visionary architect, and a highly-intelligent elephant.”

AND

“Daring visitors can enter our park via the SLIDESCAPE, an undulating, self-lubricating fun-floor! Please note that Psychoplex, and Psycho Leisure Industries, Inc. are not responsible for injuries, drownings, or death resulting from the use of the SLIDESCAPE.”

AND

“Admission is free to Psychoplex at all times! Parking in our carpeted lot is only $34.00 (per axle). If you arrive on foot, a non-transit-use surcharge of up to $44.00 may apply, depending on the judgment of our bookkeeper.”

Really fun. This conclude our weekend look at Specht Harpman but there’s much more to see at their website including the full tour of the bizarre Psychoplex. This team designs many wonderful structures worth a look.

Have a great rest of your weekend. Coming up this week, I’ve got the answer to the bonus points question for the December’s Reader Appreciation Contest, holiday cheer, and (gasp) guest bloggers. Didn’t see that coming did you. Stick around.

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Impractical Architecture

Offbeat has featured some outstanding architects. Sometimes though, the architects we meet here aren’t as popular as other featured guests. Probably because this is Offbeat Homes and not Architectural Digest.

That’s fine. I am partial to the architects because they mastermind such visions of delight for us all to see but I get that sometimes other people can be fun. That said we had a very popular non-architect guest here at Offbeat Homes back in August 2007.

Who was it?

A. One of the stars of the X-Files television series

B. An HGTV Design Star Contestant

C. A Food Network Star Challenge Contestant

Here’s the deal.

You get 5 points for the correct guess of A, B, or C.

You get 5 more points for knowing that person’s name (don’t worry I’m not spell checking).

Why are these the easiest bonus points ever?

Well, obviously once someone leaves the correct answer you can all just copy — if you trust the judgment of other player. I said the next bonus points would be easy.

However, I don’t want it to be too easy so why not guess which of the above: A, B, or C that I’d really love to have here if I could. You get it right and I’ll throw in an extra 5 points for you. I’ve been loosely keeping track and some of you are close point wise so these bonus points might make it or break it for you.

I’ll be back to leave my own comment with the answer in a few days; just like the last bonus post. Once I comment your luck has run out. So guess away. 

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15 Contest Bonus Points: The Easiest Bonus Points Ever

In any case, we should get December going with a little Anderson Anderson Architecture. Anderson Anderson Architecture is a slick company with unique award winning designs. This firm has built extensively in the Pacific Northwest (cool) but also in Japan and other areas.

What’s funny is that I’ve been a fan of both The Chameleon House and Anderson Anderson Architects for a good long while, yet just recently found out that they built The Chameleon House. What the… I keep trying to figure out how I missed this. I need to pay attention.

The Chameleon House is so beautiful and just breathtaking to see.

This tower of a house offers views of Lake Michigan and the rest of the landscape and bonus, this home left the land alone for the most part. Some may think it looks cold but it’s really an offbeat wonder. This house might almost appear to assault the land but yet, it doesn’t — it comes off as belonging to the space it occupies. The designer worked very hard to minimize the feeling of intrusion a home like this might inspire. Take a look at what they did…

“To help mask the scale and house program window requirements of the structure, the building is wrapped in a skirting wall of recycled translucent polyethelene slats, standing two feet out from the galvanized sheet metal cladding of the wall surface, on aluminum frames that serve also as window washing platforms and emergency exit structures. The translucent polyethylene material set out over the dully reflective wall cladding is chosen for its ability to gather the light and color of its landscape, dissolving the finely shadowed and inexplicably haloed structure into the seasonal color cycle of snow and ice and black twig tracery; pale pink blossom clouds; pollen green leaf and grass; golden straw and vivid foliage.”

They pulled this off seamlessly in my opinion.

Living space…

If you’re interested, there’s a book on their designs; Anderson Anderson: Architecture and Construction featuring 25 projects. As our featured architects this week I’ll be showing one or two others of their pieces but the Chameleon House may be my favorite.

Coming up in December; snowy homes, Lifestyles Channel events, an Offbeat Homes contest for people who love reading about homes and or seeing some killer eye candy, Offbeat New Years resolutions, and more so stay tuned.

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Featured Architects of the Week: Anderson Anderson Architecture

The cool contest:

Currently AD is running a random drawing book give away for their newest book, Private Views: Inside the World’s Greatest Homes. 10 winners and an easy sign up. (No purchase or anything like that). I want this book. It looks great. Some of the homes featured are not my style — more fancy contemporary but many are simply beautiful. I think it’ll be a nice book. Private Views features, among others…

Our old pal, the amazing Bart Prince.

Preston T. Phillips’ awe inspiring home. 

Now don’t you want the book after seeing these two photos?

If not you can always enter and then send it to me if you win (just kidding) well, sort of kidding. Anyway, AD has a major drool worthy slide show featuring more clips from the book. See the slide show here.  

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Architectural Digest Events & Contests

This ultra unique Lake Superior Tower Retreat in Two Harbors, Minnesota was designed by Dale Mulfinger and Dan Wallace. According to the SALA site this project is still under construction although if that’s true it doesn’t look too far from finished. This home makes great use of a four-story stone and copper tower and a 30 ft high platform from which you can see the shore.

I like that the exterior is different from what I’m used to seeing as a typical cabin retreat but also love the interior touches — at the SALA site you can see more under Dan Wallace’s work including an amazing bath with a view.

This next home took me forever to find again — remember yesterday when I noted that you can’t bookmark the SALA site. However, I looked and looked and finally found it again. This was the home that made me decide to feature SALA in the first place.

The Johnson Residence in Big Sky, Montana designed by Kelly R. Davis with Timothy Old is an award winner and it’s easy to see why:

Just amazing. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a porch quite like this. I’ve been through all the SALA houses at their website and I like a lot of the work they do but overall Kelly R. Davis’s work has been my favorite — very much worth checking out.

See more at the SALA Architects website; Or if you live in Minnesota and are thinking of building you could always visit them.

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Featured Architect of the Week: SALA Architects

The new building earned it’s shape from the bike itself according to World Architecture. The design premise took off from there as Tony Owen NDM notes, “The geometry of the engines forks and frames can be seen in the lines of the building. The building does not copy them, however, it suggests this movement and style. Rather than use the shape literally, we sought to express the elegance and aerodynamics of this movement in the lines of the building.”

I think you can see that they gathered inspiration from the bike itself because of the lines and swoops and colors; but it’s not as if they simply built a “bike” building. It complements the Harley.

More after the jump. Including a look at the interior.

I like how in the night shots, the light plays off the design. It’s serene for a structure housing speed heavy bikes. What odd is the building looks so much more active in the daylight photos but I’m sticking with night as my favorite scene.

To read more about the design aspects and building process visit Tony Owen NDM or World Architecture.

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Harley Davidson Building, Australian Headquarters

Eco-architecture and architects comes in many levels and flavors. From easy green to extreme but every bit counts. Here are some beautiful (and cool) green structures. To learn more simply click on the links.

DeBoer Architects — the Gatehouse

One World Design — the Drew Residence (I love this home)

San Luis Sustainability Group — The first permitted straw bale building in California

Arkin Tilt Architects – Palter Residence  (Everything they do is amazing; check them out.)

I think what people forget is that often (almost 100% of the time in my opinion) eco-living and beauty are so interconnected that it’s impossible to separate the two. If you’re looking for style and harmony with the earth it’s not that tough and it should be the standard.

Don’t forget to check out what other b5media bloggers have to say about the environment today.

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Eco-Architecture: Four Great Examples