Rex Nichols Architects-designed glass home coming to Fort Lauderdale

Updated: 2 days ago

The 4,000 square foot Florida modern home is built using LEED principles in energy-efficiency, innovation, and recycled material

Glass House Architects | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Rex Nichols Architects

We should acknowledge that it was Mies van der Rohe the architect who designed the 1st Glass House. Due to litigation, Ms Farnsworth did not allow Mies to name her home as the Glass House, but the follower Philip Johnson did. You can imagine how Mies van der Rohe felt when he saw Philip Johnson naming his design as the 1st Glass House.

A contemporary Glass House designed by Rex Nichols Architects and developer, Jeff Hendricks Home, is coming to Florida. The 4,000 square foot residency is awaiting permit approval in order to begin construction at 2309 Barcelona Drive in Las Olas Isles in Fort Lauderdale but that didn’t stop RNA from releasing its exquisite renderings. According to the press release, “the Glass House” will cost about $5 million once its completed mid-2019.

In a press release, Fort Lauderdale architects RNA design leader for contemporary architecture, Alex Penna says the modern house’s inspiration came from adding a contemporary aesthetic to a similar steel and glass house constructed in 1945 by architect Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe. Penna also says he’s influenced by Deconstruction - the school of philosophy initiated by Jacques Derrida and the psychoanalytic approach of Jacques Lacan. The four-bedroom, four-and-a-half bathroom, property will be an open-concept space with floor to ceiling unobstructed views of a private back garden.

web link - 3D walk-through video of RNA Glass House.

An open plan kitchen, dining room, and great room create the ideal atmosphere for entertaining, while still obtaining a family living appeal

A spacious office with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors in the front of the home offers a serene and sweeping space.

The abode will also include a wrap-around pool and Jacuzzi, complete with an infinity waterfall, that’s accessible through exposed sliding glass doors

What really distinguishes “the Glass House” from modernist architects is the fact that the design is not primarily set for function, but it is also to create a building design that can be seen as a sculpture. The contemporary Glass House not only tries to stay away from the pure functionalism and simple forms of Mid-Century architecture, by giving emphasis to the building aesthetic towards a sculptural design, but it also incorporates sustainability design with LEED standards. LEED standards a criteria seen in developments such as Midtown 29, Terminal B at PortMiami, and the eco-friendly, $28 million super yacht, Safira.

Alex Penna, the architect firm’s design leader who holds a grandfathered LEED AP® accreditation, is thrilled to be building Fort Lauderdale’s first glass house by LEED standards, notes a press release.

LEED AP accreditation is through the U.S. Green Building Council, a private, membership-based non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in building design, construction, and operation. In an exclusive interview with Curbed Miami, Penna explained that even though the project owner didn’t request a LEED certified home, his RNA team built it with LEED’s sustainability principles. For Penna’s version of the “Glass House,” he focused on three LEED standards —energy-efficiency design, innovation in design, and recycled materials which, for all intended purposes, makes for a green design home.

“Because the project location is in Florida, we [were] inspired by energy-efficiency design, providing shading, daylight-efficiency, and cross ventilation,” Penna says.

For example, Penna and company used high-end daylight and sunlight computer simulator software to create a canopy that blocks direct sunlight at noon and during the summer to reach the interior of the home. There’s more innovation. For instance, in the living room, a sun-shelf redirects year-long direct sunlight beams that passes through the skylight to become a source of natural light to illuminate the space, Penna says. “The redirection of the sunlight will enhance daylight levels, distribution and quantity,” Penna says. “This is a great way to save money on electricity for the entire year. ”The home also uses composite wood (a form of recycled wood with thermoplastic components), high energy-efficiency heating pumps, roof icynene insulation from renewable materials, and insulated low-e glass.

Contact Rex Nichols Architects

https://www.rexnicholsarchitects.com/

561-445-3520

Article by Carla St. Louis

Miami Curbed

Link To Article:

https://miami.curbed.com/2018/5/31/17409072/florida-rex-nichols-architects-glass-home-leed

Article Date:

May 31, 2018, 10:00am EDT