Surber Barber Choate & Hertlein

Private Residence

Atlanta, Georgia

The owners wished to renovate and add to their typical neo-traditional home in a way that would gain needed functions and simultaneously express their love of contemporary art and design.

The project began with a simple need to provide more closet and bathroom space for the master bedroom area. The solution resulted in a master bedroom addition in the form of a white cube jutting out of the existing house. Its minimalist form set the tone for further the renovation of the existing, where "traditional" elements like cornices and ornate door and window surrounds were stripped off and replaced by clean edges.

A new entry court was created in front of the house which enjoys interesting glimpses into a walled, water garden opening off the new master bathroom. In the sloping backyard a retaining wall was erected to provide a flat, pristine lawn surrounding a lap pool centered in the grass. At the rear terraces, minimalist glass railings are used to avoid obscuring the view down to the pool. An outdoor dining area is surrounded by a minimal cubic frame that is more symbolic than actual enclosure.

The existing interior spaces were modified to create appropriate settings for the owners collections of important vintage art deco furnishings and artwork.

Client: Private

Completion: 2003

Award:
   Atlanta AIA, Citation, 2004

Publication:
   Home & Living Trends (Volume 20 No.3), 2004    Veranda Magazine September 2005

Image 2 © John Umberger
Images 1, 3-4 © Rion Rizzo, Creative Sources Photography
Images 5-10, this page © Deborah Whitlaw