i be architecture-ing

Since it seems finding time to update my portfolio on top of my day job, my night job, blogging, and all of my side jobs is just NOT going to happen, I thought I would take a second and post some images of some recent projects that I’ve worked on. Some were quick studies, some are still in development, and some….well, lets just say aren’t moving forward. :-\ Either way, I’m excited about all of my projects and even more excited about the projects to come. 🙂

Kitchen Remodel – Israel

This project would have been a fun one if the client’s purchase agreement hadn’t fallen through on the home. The home is approximately 15 years old and located in Israel (awesome!). The clients are a traditional Jewish family and they planned on renovating the kitchen to better suite their needs after the purchase.

Like most projects, the client’s needs were large while the space is small – relatively speaking. As this was a very quick consultation, and the project fell through rather quickly, I only got about halfway into the design process.

Client's scan of the original builder's drawing set

That being said, the program consisted of taking the existing kitchen, very basic as seen above, and is about 4.5 meters by 3.1 meters. The space needed to accommodate enough storage for three sets of dishes, 2 sinks and 2 work areas in order to separate meat and dairy (kosher), a small work space, as well as seating for 8 (it’s a 7 person family). No small task.

conceptual options 1 and 2

In the above designs, I essentially stretched the counters further out into the dining space, while still leaving enough roof for a decent sized table and circulation. The work area I pushed to the end of the kitchen counter with a small stool and added a large island with small prep sink and dual work spaces (recessed cutting boards). The two sinks I centered at the windows and added enough upper cabinet storage for all of their needs. If the design had moved forward, I would have liked to incorporate pantry storage into the layout and play with some additional built-ins and lighting.

Single Family Home – Grand Cayman

I talked about this project in a previous blog post. The conceptual design, while not completely finished is, in my eyes, finished. Due to differences of opinion, I terminated the contract and supplied the client with documents to date for his use. Unfortunate, but there it is. Learning to discern which clients you are and are not compatible with is just part of the process.

Either way, I think you’ll enjoy the images. There is a definite “island” feel to the home. And, coming in at just under 5,000 sf, it’s truly monstrous in scale – at least in my experience.

exterior conceptual rendering - front overall

exterior conceptual rendering - rear

One of the client’s requirements is to raise the ground floor a minimum of 4′. This will require significant grading of the site, which is first on a major waterway and second not quite as grand as the home itself. There is also a infinity pool at the rear of the home which requires filling the site from setback to setback on all sides. Ultimately I believe the design is a success, though making some compromises on size in favor of greater efficiency would have been nice.

More projects surely to come. Maybe one of these days I’ll even get to update that portfolio. For now, this will have to do.

Cheers.