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JOHN BROWN is the editor of theslowhome.com and the founder of the Slow Home Movement. He is a registered architect, real estate broker and Professor of Architecture at the University of Calgary.
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Reconnecting
View to the Finished Product
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Screens
Canopy Detail
Seating with White Box Wall Detail
Seating Meets the Screens
View Towards the Rest of the House
House at Dusk
Studio Facade, Before
Studio Interior, Before
Floor Plan
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When our clients bought their 1920’s four square catalog house in an older suburb of Washington, DC they discovered a one story building of equal footprint in the backyard. Built as a photographer’s studio, but never used when the neighbors shut it down, it was disconnected from the house by a hyphen that resolved a half-story level change. Our job was to integrate this room into the life of house and family.
This we did by opening up the connection between the two and giving the resulting family room a strong orientation to the wide side yard garden. A spare modern aesthetic contrasts with, and compliments, the existing house. Steel windows, glass block for privacy from neighbors, and a column free porch adjust the room to its various orientations.
Given the generous dimensions of the room, it was possible to articulate walls and ceiling by projecting surface planes into the space without sacrificing function. Reveals between the planes conceal lights and blinds. Sparsely furnished, there is a television behind rolling doors, a fireplace and a pool table. A cantilevered bench on a glass block wall invites repose while the owner runs the table.
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We believe that our homes and neighborhoods should be healthy, vibrant places that uplift the spirit and gracefully fit our needs. We call for an end to poor construction, bad design, misleading marketing, unfair lending practices and environmental neglect in the housing industry. We acknowledge our collective responsibility to create CLOSE, SIMPLE, LIGHT places to live that leave a positive legacy for future generations.
provides design focused information that homeowners can use to improve the quality of how and where they live. It takes its name from the slow food movement which arose as a reaction to the processed food industry. The sprawl of cookie cutter housing that surrounds us is like fast food - standardized, homogenous, and wasteful. It contributes to a too fast life that is bad for us, our cities, and the environment. In the same way that slow food raises awareness of the food we eat and how these choices affect our lives, Slow Home empowers you to take more control of your home and improve the quality of how you live while reducing your environmental impact and futureproofing the long term investment value of your home.
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