| REVERE QUALITY HOUSE: RESTORATION + ADDITION | SIESTA KEY, FLORIDA | IMAGES DRAWINGS TEXT |
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Because of the small size (935SF) of the historic Revere Quality House (RQH) designed by Paul Rudolph and Ralph Twitchell in 1948, the RQH restoration only becomes financially feasible if a larger home is constructed in conjunction with the Revere Quality House to justify the cost of the land. New codes require the first habitable level of the new house to be at an elevation close to the existing roof level of the historic house. This, along with a limited available footprint to construct a new home presented a significant challenge. The new house is detached from the RQH and is slightly rotated off a perpendicular axis to create a dynamic relationship between the structures. The area below the new house is designed to allow for sight lines from the existing RQH under the “belly” of the new home into a private landscaped courtyard and terrace. In the new house, solid walls are located so that views are protected from the roof of the RQH. As the new house emerges either east or west of the existing house, the walls become glass to take advantage of interior site views as |
well as views to the bayou and Gulf of Mexico beyond. To maintain a low and horizontal expression of the new house, the floor to ceiling heights were kept to a minimum and this expression of the horizontal concrete floors and roof are consistent with the language of the existing Rudolph | Twitchell house. A new exterior courtyard is defined by the original historic laundry structure attached to the RQH and the new glass and wood entry to the new home. A swimming pool has been introduced into the landscape and is located perpendicular to the screened courtyard of the RQH. Custom milled Ipe wood is used on the new house as a counter point to the original striated plywood wood storage walls on the RQH. The original colors on the RQH (Peacock Blue on the ceiling, Burnt Red on the lally columns and Buttercup Yellow in the kitchen) are each used once on site walls in the new composition.
The 1948 Revere Quality House has been historically and accurately restored to the original drawing specifications. All images Copyright Steven Brooke Studios |