Deppmeier Home

AIA - Montana -- Merit Design Award Winner
 

Sunset view of the south elevation.
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 Slide descriptions


 1.  Sunset view of the south elevation
 2.  South elevation
 3.  North elevation showing the masonry construction
 4.  Master bedroom
 5.  South elevation showing relationship to the horse barn and arena
 6.  Kitchen wall of the great room
 7.  Interior construction detailing
 8.  Fireplace wall of the great room

South elevation showing relationship to the horse barn and arena
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  This house, situated on a canyon point amongst the rocks and trees on a 20-acre site, overlooks the Yellowstone
  River valley and the Beartooth Mountain range of south-central Montana This is the high plains where the mountains meet the prairie - this is the "Big Sky Country". A dense cluster of ponderosa pines and steep sandstone cliffs define the west and south edges of the site, and indigenous slender wheatgrass and sagebrush carpet the ground fioor. There is natutal layering to the landscape forming protective pockets for shelter from the harsh Montana climate.
  As the site plan indicates, the approach, entrance, and views are organized around the high point of the site, thereby affording the pattern and location of the built environment for a 1,440 s.f, horse barn, corral, and 1,640 s.t house to dramatize site lines and view corridors.The scale, massing, texture, and use of materials does not attempt to compete with the natural environment, but rather compliments and embellishes it.		   The use of pole barn post and beam construction methods intentionally reduced the impact of the built environment on the indigenous landscape form and materials. The use of galvanized steel, rough sawn fir and cedar, concrete block, and industrial hardware, shaped the building forms to reference the rural regional vernacular of south-central Montana, and are intended to weather and take on the patina similar to built forms found throughout the area built around the turn of the century. The harsh environment required the built form to respond accordingly. The oversized roof design protects the house from very intense summer sun and also collects the summer breezes coming off of the canyon walls. The north masonry wall provided a thermal mass for protection from the cold winter storms, and the expanse of glazing oriented south and west provided solar gains while also serving to extend the interior spaces to the natural environment outside. The color of the sky is relected from the galvanized roof,  the color of the 

sandstone found in the concrete block, and the color of the sagebrush and slender wheatgrass absorbed in the weathered grey of the natural wood siding.
  The organization of the plan is based upon the programmatic separation of public and private areas. Common to regional farmhouse design, entry is made through the mud room into the kitchen, which is at the hub of all family function. Breakfast was a time to establish daily activity and dinner was a time to reflect. Circulation and non-critical living spaces were organized to the north, and the view to the Beartooth Mountains dramatically revealed to the south. Sleeping areas were oriented to the east to take advantage of the waking morning sun.
          This place is defined by the open spaces, the natural environment and its agricultural roots, and the simple quality of life and the people who shape that. This is Montana - a place in the west, the "Big Sky Country."

click here for the sketches.