Alternate Spaces – Floating House vs. Fall House

What if you could choose pick just one…

Oregon Floating House

Oregon Floating House

This floating house, designed by Robert Harvey Oshatz Architect, sits on the Willamette River in Portland, OR. The homeowners desired a natural design with soft-flowy lines, one that fit the environment around them. So, Oshatz created this curvaceous, wooden floating home that mimics the water’s movements. The home’s exterior is made of curved glulam beams, which the designer says “evoke the poetry of the ripples and contours of a river,” and expansive glass, which opens up the home to beautiful views of the lake, sunrises and sunsets. Just as the floating home’s design mirrors the water, the exterior, clad in red cedar shingles, also imitates a large wooden log.

Oregon Floating House

With its curvy, wooden and natural design and warm colors, the interior of this 2,300-square-foot floating house matches its exterior. Upstairs holds the master suite, which includes a bedroom, a built in couch, a spa tub and a spectacular view of the river. The house also comes with its own study and guestroom. Last stop is the deck, which can be accessed via a sliding door located in the main living space.

Oregon Floating House

California Fall House

California Fall House

The Fall House, which was designed by Fougeron Architecture, sits on the edge of a cliff with a 250-foot drop to the Pacific Ocean in Big Sur, CA. With its bird’s eye view, the home has access to breathtaking views of its surrounding environment. Similar to the floating house, the Fall House is defined by its surroundings, or rather it is embedded in them; long and thin in volume, the home fits with the contours of the land, causing it to be deformed in shape and structure (but in a way that works).

California Fall House

The Fall House is made up of three sections—two rectangular boxes that are connected by a den/library surrounded by all glass—and three bedrooms. The house’s main body, a concrete wing that keeps the house locked to the land, features a green roof and holds two bedrooms. The northern section of the house provides exposure to the outside world, while the southern sections offers shelter. The northern side holds a master bedroom suit and offers a view of the ocean and coastline, thanks to its floor-to-ceiling windows; the copper-clad southern side, on the other hand, provides an enclosed retreat and includes a kitchen, living room and dining room.

California Fall House

Both have spectacular views: one of a river in Oregon, another of the Pacific Ocean. Which would you choose?

No Comments Yet

Leave a Reply

aspire design and home is seeker and storyteller of the sublime in living. It is a global guide to in-depth and varied views of beauty and shelter that stirs imagination; that delights and inspires homeowners as well as art and design doyens. Collaborating with emergent and eminent architects, artisans, designers, developers and tastemakers, aspire creates captivating content that savors the subjects and transports with stunning imagery and clever, thought-provoking writing. Through lush and unique visuals and a fresh editorial lens, aspire explores what is new and undiscovered in art, interiors, design, culture, real estate, travel and more. aspire design and home is an international narrative and resource for all seeking the sublime.