Location

Poyntelle, Pennsylvania, USA

Type

1,000 SF Residential House

Description

Butterfly House is a 1000 square foot guest house set amongst a heavily-wooded site in Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is conceived as a preternatural, brilliantly colored form that oscillates between sheer camouflage and sparkling beacon within the woods. The design maximizes access and views to a nearby pond. Simultaneously, Butterfly House “backs” into the woods using the bedrooms, bath and kitchen to make secluded the more open living-dining areas. Working from a standard rectangular plan, the form shifts subtly in three dimensions, pulling the landscape inward along its edges. The house, for two Artists, uses a custom-colored, recycled stainless steel cladding system that at once augments the form of the building and blends it into its surroundings. The sheen and color of the cladding emit glowing color as much as they absorb it – transforming the building’s appearance daily and between seasons.