El Cerrito House | Lawrence Cheung

The proposed house is located on a small wooded and sloped site with a winding creek at the bottom of the property. The house is typical of the Spanish Colonial style, characterized by a rectangular or L-plan, horizontal massing, low-pitched mission clay tile roofs, exposed wood rafter tails, decorative wrought-iron window grills, broad expanses of thick white plastered walls with recessed-in French patio doors and French casement windows. The minimalist interiors will be conceived as meticulously proportioned spaces with a simple yet refined material palette that consists of white plaster walls and exposed timber beams, with handmade Tierra floor tiles, cast stone fireplaces, white oak floors and pale limestone used for basins and work surfaces. Lawrence is primarily concerned in bringing clarity to the layout and to the vernacular style by expressing solidity and mass that is most evident in Spanish Colonial architecture.