For this four-story family residence, the architects experimented with
vertical circulation and crisp white materiality to create a spacious,
vibrant, and geometrically engaging house. Organized around a singular
central spine, the project is an exploration of fluid continuity and
volumetric adventure. On a down-sloping hillside parcel of land in San
Francisco’s Noe Valley sits this four-story project that embraces
vertical stacking and crisp materiality for a tightly-knit family unit
of three.

Four-story massing usually leads to a space that feels tight or
repetitive, so the architects worked to make the vertical circulation
both evocative and valuable, forgoing the pancake-style San Francisco
house, and instead opening the house in section, maximizing a feeling of
spaciousness and a sense of architectural adventure. That meant a small
sacrifice in terms of physically usable space, but a huge gain in terms
of enjoyable architecture. Double-height spaces and a staircase
centered within the central spine of the house encourage the clients and
their visitors to engage with each level.