RIMROCK RESIDENCE | OLSON KUNDIG
Spokane, Washington
Description is provided by the architect. This house might seem precariously situated, straddling two sides of a wash, on the edge of a cliff, but the outcropping is stable, made of tough, slow-cooled volcanic basalt. The name “rimrock” refers to this type of situation, with a sheer rock wall at the upper edge of a plateau or canyon. The seam below the house is a natural, preexisting path for animals, who use it to get from the mountains to the river. So, even though the house is here, they can still move unimpeded.
Raising the building in this way wasn’t just about the animals. In the winter here, changing wind patterns create massive snow drifts, and hovering the house means that the windows can run floor-to-ceiling, which is essential to maximizing the 180-degree views overlooking Riverside State Park and north Spokane—valley, mountains, forest, river, city—without piles of snow accumulating directly against them. The interior remains open, but also protected.
The exterior materials are allowed to weather. The private areas on the first floor, which include guest bedrooms and offices, are cloaked in untreated steel and arranged with the idea that the owners will migrate through the house as the conditions of the day change. This steel-clad portion rises to the north, leading to additional private areas on the second floor. The remaining void between the ground plane and the steel-clad portion is wrapped in glass; here, the living room, dining room, and kitchen float above the ravine.
The particular shape of the building responds to the topography of the bluff. I also like to think it reflects the fact that the owners are big collectors of art, and the building is itself sculptural. They are, in fact, major collectors of work by Harold Balazs, who I consider my mentor, and it was an honor to visit the house with Harold and see him so pleased with the outcome.
This is also a project close to my heart because it is in the immediate vicinity of where I grew up, so in a sense, I was coming home to do it. The clients came to me specifically because they saw me as a local boy who did all right. They’d watched my career and liked the idea of us both being risk takers. Being on site resonated at a deep level—hearing the crunch of the snow under my feet, smelling the pine needles. It was so utterly familiar.
