Montecito Residence is a single-family home located within a fire-prone canyon in Southern California. The home, which is less than 3,800 square feet, was designed to conform to the tear drop shape of the existing site and make use of the scarce natural resources of the area. The large, exposed structural-steel roof, designed with A588 Weathering Steel, shields the elevated glass-enclosed living area from the sun and allows the home to be naturally cooled by offshore breezes which flow through the home with the help of the tall entry door. The roof and gutter system of the large roof plane was designed to direct all runoff to a cistern for the irrigation of the native landscape. The home has received multiple national and regional design awards, appeared in several books, and has been recognized in dozens of magazines worldwide such as Architectural Record, Residential Architect, Sunset Magazine and The New York Times.

 
Architect: Olson Kundig Architects
Photographers: Tim Bies and Nikolas Koenig