The recent Pritzker Prize winner was never shy to show his bold and unapologetic design aesthetic, pulling from various architectural practices. Using large forms and volumes, Arata Isozaki works with his environment to create seamless spaces. During a trip to the desert to visit his long-time art critic friend Jerry Sohn, Isozaki was immersed into Southern California's desert landscape. After discussing ideas for a new project with Sohn, the trip's experience allowed for the architect to create three pavilions that use the California desert and the empty sky as his backdrop. 

The property is nestled in Southern California's Joshua Tree national park. A space entirely off the grid, the closest "urban setting" is a small town built by Gene Autry and Roy Roger called, Pioneertown. Isozaki used these elements to create three outdoor "bedrooms" that represent four different seasons. Located within three different areas of Sohn's property, the architect noted in previous texts that "the desert's architecture has only the sky as its ceiling and the ground as its floor." This design ideology propelled Isozaki to create three distinct areas which "expanded" the house out towards the surrounding environment and created a serene state of being.  

The first outdoor bedroom expresses elements of "the most complete" architectural space. Said to be the "winter bedroom" the simple cube-like structure consists of a fully enclosed cube made of concrete and glass. Measuring nine by nine by nine feet with a square glass panel sizing at six feet, the enclosed structure has a glazed skylight that allows its inhabitants to look up and enjoy the night sky. "Sleeping in the unit, detached from civilization but somehow partially disconnected from immediately or directly experiencing nature, one feels something like a kinship with the architecture of the bedroom, as if body and structure were fused like a suit and nature could be partially filtered and partially cultured."

The second outdoor bedroom represents the summer season. The concrete deck sits on top of a stepped concrete wall whose form is more sculptural than its neighboring pavilions. This particular structure differs not only in its form but its representation. Its platform design allows the individual interacting with the space to achieve Isozaki's "space between the heavens and earth" theme. A blend of formal and informal elements, in both presence and function, highlights Isozaki's metaphorical motifs for the project. 

Lastly, the final outdoor bedroom represents both fall and spring. Similar to its neighboring structures, this outdoor space is made out of board-formed concrete. This built space takes elements from winter's enclosed structural traits and summer's open minimalism. The folded over wall creates a dramatic yet delicate curve, which provides shade and a sense of place within the vast open desert scape. 

According to Isozaki each element of Joshua Tree's landscape played an instrumental role alongside the outdoor bedrooms. "The ceiling is the sky, the surrounding mountain range and rocks are the walls and partitions, and the majority of the floor is the desert." The architect's approach to California's "indoor-outdoor" aesthetic married well with his distinctive designs which blend nature and architecture.