Venn Zen began in pursuit of designing my own space. It is the culmination of a conceptual analysis of work-life balance, work-life integration, and the commonality of desire and benefit with natural relief. With deep thought and light sensibility, it is an architecture for productivity and tranquility. It a space to live, work, think, pray, exercise, and love; a space to celebrate in all that is splendid, and to be centered with the beauty of what surrounds you. It developed from a concept for self to a display of possibility, for a precise location, when I was hired by a Realtor to envision images for a one acre property he wanted to sell. Magnificent in imagination and understated in simplicity- a gravel and black locust wood paver entry drive treads lightly under the oaks’ canopies, leading you to a roundabout where you can be dropped off or pull off to the organically inspired carport. To enter the home, you take a wooden walkway that becomes a bridge, across a slender moat, which is fed from a cascading waterfall with water gently overflowing from the rooftop pool. You pass through an entry rock garden, which can be used for a variety of activities. Shielded from the elements, the sun dances through droplets that form a water wall around you. Before you is the central Zen garden- low in maintenance and high in impact. Beyond is the entry to the living space with the shared kitchen, living, and dining; or you can take a floating concrete ramp to your left that wraps with the circular form and leads you to the work space on the second level above. The second level on the living side contains all that is needed and more for a private, luxurious single-family home- 4 bedrooms and 3 baths, including a generous Master Suite with a built-in sauna and home spa. The opposite volume houses an office with space to operate a home-based business, gym, kitchenette, and powder room. The two volumes are connected by a covered walkway that overlooks the shared garden. The circular ramp continues up to the roof, where the living side has a rooftop terrace, surrounded with built-in seating and a perimeter planter; and this connects to the other side, filled with water- with a central shallow water lounge, hot tub ring, and a perimeter swimming pool. The design sits lightly on the ground; self-contained and contemplatively expansive.
Residential
