Contextual Fit

Addition to an Existing Order

The objective of this project is to add an extension to Richard Meier's famous Smith House which was design in 1965 and built in1967. Located in the town of Darien on the southern coast of Connecticut, this modern and contemporary style home was revolutionary for its time eventually leading to Meier becoming the youngest Pritzker prize winner of the time at the age of 49.

For the project our requirements included the conceptual ideas of hierarchy, conceptual connecting analogies, inclusion of existing systems, proportion, and incorporating new systems without taking away from the original design.

Narrative

The Smith's bought a new home to begin an early retirement after Mr. Smith (a professional poker player) won several World Series Poker Tours in the last decade. They soon learned however that their house would not be able to accommodate their whole family and requested that a new master bedroom be constructed along with an attached bath. Along with this, Mrs. Smith requested that a attached duplex workout room be added along with an area for sunbathing as she is a fitness influencer; Mr. Smith requests for there to be an area to garden as that is what he wishes to do in his newfound retirement. With family time being an important part of their family values they requested that a large family room be added with Mr. Smith requesting for it to bear some resemblance to his poker playing past. Finally, being fans of history and architecture they requested that no part of the original structure is changed in a major way and that Meier's style is respected in the new extension.