Texas firm Lemmo Architecture and Design has clad this hunting lookout and writer's studio in weathering steel, to disguise the structure against the arid landscape.
A 40-minute drive from Austin, Clear Rock Lookout perches on a steep limestone cliff that forms part of a 1,000-acre (405-hectare) ranch in Texas Hill Country.
Clear Rock 瞭望台由Lemmo建筑与设计公司的Stephanie和Ryan Lemmo设计,既是一座书写和绘画工作室,也是一座狩猎台,因此需要最佳的环境,并对地形进行伪装。
The building – designed by Stephanie and Ryan Lemmo of Lemmo Architecture and Design – is intended as both a writing and drawing studio, and a hunting blind, so needed an optimum vantage point of the surroundings and to be camouflaged against the terrain.
"The site was specifically chosen for its views by the owner, after years of slowly traversing and mapping the wooded cliff edge," the team said.
The single-storey studio measures 450 square feet (42 square metres). Topped with a flat roof, the simple rectangular structure is clad in rust-coloured metal to match the dusty landscape and reduce the chance of detection by wildlife.
钢制外观运用了焊接油箱的技术,也暗喻了业主的少年时代。
现代形式与传统的Hill乡村建筑风格形成对比,传统风格通常包括木材、山墙和低洼形式。
The steel exterior also pays homage to the owner's youth, which was spent welding oil tanks.
The modern form contrasts with the traditional Hill Country vernacular, which typically comprises wood, gables and low-lying forms.
To access Clear Rock Lookout, one must walk from a mesa – a flat-topped hill with steep sides – across a grated metal footbridge and past an enclosed observation deck.
Outdoor steps wrap around the building and lead down to the studio, which is lined in floor-to-ceiling glass walls, and the hunting blind, where a narrow window is used for propping up guns.
“这座与地形融合的建筑强调了景观视角,其结构系统有着独特优势。”建筑师说。
"This gradual reveal of the building strengthens the unfolding landscape panorama made possible from the unique vantage provided by the structure," the studio said.
Light grey walls, concrete floors and pale wood ceiling panels form the interior. Vintage furniture, cowhide rugs, and decorative yet practical pieces like a lantern, a drum and cowboy hats, accent the rooms.
Clear Rock Lookout was one of Lemmo Architecture and Design's first commissions, and received an AIA Austin award in 2017.
Other projects in Texas Hill Country include a tiered waterfront home with ample outdoor areas by Lake Flato, a low-lying sustainable residence by Miró Rivera Architects and a glass house with modernist cues by North Arrow Studio.
Photography is by Casey Dunn.