Roof

Located in Mill Valley, California, these two cabins designed by Feldman Architecture were built as accessory structures to the client’s existing hill side home; they mainly wanted extra space for an art studio and yoga room which will also serve as a private guest cabin. Two small cabins are placed stra...

A contemporary farmhouse that doubles as a gallery space for a large art collection. Nestled on a ridge among rolling agricultural land on the coast of the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Peninsula House is a great example of contemporary architecture in Australia. The dwelling has a modern, rectangular design but fe...

A design that celebrates the passing of time and the beauty of light. Designed by Melbourne-based studio Edition Office for an older couple, Kyneton House is a cozy home that has a special relationship to the passing of time as seen through the changing of seasons in a garden. The design is contemporary and distinctive, combining wa...

Partially buried inside a rocky hillside, this house draws inspiration from cave dwellings. Located in a secluded area on Serifos Island, Greece, NCaved is a contemporary house that disappears into the coastal landscape thanks to an ingenious design. Athens-based architecture firm Mold Architects designed the dwelling a...

A concrete house built on a beach in Oaxaca, Mexico. Contemporary Mexican architecture merges traditional and modern elements seamlessly while also celebrating nature. Casa del Sapo is a great example. Designed by Espacio 18 Arquitectura, this concrete house is ...

A Norwegian cabin inspired by traditional barns and rural architecture. Located in Ulvik, western Norway, this cabin pays homage to rural architecture while also giving a nod to the work of Swiss architect Rudolf Olgiati and of Norwegian romanticist painter Hans Gude. Rever & Drage Architects combined all of these influences into a...

A creatively designed house extension that expands and complements existing living spaces. Located on a large site just below the Illawarra Range, within the town of Thirroul, Australia, Exoskeleton House is a new extension that enhances the living spaces of an existing brick bungalow from the 1950s. The clients hir...

A sustainable, high-end retreat nestled in a protected jungle in Mexico. Opened in 2021, Casa Bautista is an eco-friendly, sustainable retreat that welcomes guests in a verdant paradise. Located in the heart of the protected Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve, one of Tulum’s Unesco Heritage sites, the villa offers trav...

A tranquil retreat in upstate New York. After founding their own homeware brand, Piaule, in 2016, Nolan McHugh and Trevor Briggs started thinking about a larger scale project: a hotel. Fast forward to 2021, and Piaule Catskills has become a reality. Designed in a collaboration with prefab specialists Garrison Architects, the retreat celebrates the idea of reconnecting to nature. Locat...

A contemporary take on barn houses. When designing rustic-style houses, architecture firms often lean towards a more traditional design. Think wooden beams and natural stone walls. For Barnhouse Werkhoven, the RV Architecture studio took a different approach. Distinctly contemporary, this h...

Built in the Netherlands, in an area with strict building restrictions that limit any new structure to a certain volume, Villa SG21 makes the most of the landscape. FillieVerhoeven Architects designed the minimalist villa with a contemporary aesthetic which permeates the entire dwelling, from the exterior to the living spaces. The design also integrates...

A concrete house built in a secluded forest in Mexico. Inspired by the idea of bringing living spaces back to wild landscapes, Casa Amapa rises from among mature trees in a secluded forest in Guadalajara, Mexico. Architect René Pérez Gómez designed the dwelling with a

[dropcap]A[/dropcap] house with a terrace that opens to nature can do wonders for one’s well-being. For cities, even a balcony or a small corner of greenery inside an apartment will suffice. We want to talk about houses designed with one or more patios and courtyards that connect living spaces to glorious natural landscapes, gardens, and even urban jungles. Homes and summer retreats where terra...

A home designed to coexist with nature in a new town close to Minoh City, Japan. Located in a rapidly developing new town still surrounded by nature, just north of Minoh City, in the Osaka Prefecture, Japan, House in Minohshinmachi has a distinctive design that aims to create a perfect balance between urban and natural environments.

An old farmhouse reconstructed as a studio with brutalist interiors. Built at the edge of a meadow in Castasegna, on the border between Switzerland and Italy, Cascina Garbald Studio looks inconspicuous in the rural setting with a design that draws inspiration from vernacular architecture. However, this building hid...

The ruins of a lighthouse, transformed into a light stone building. Adaptive-reuse architecture projects often impress with a thoughtful approach to design, especially when they celebrate a building’s past in a subtle way. This project in Bergeggi, Italy

A holiday home designed in perfect harmony with a spectacular landscape in Iceland. Named Holiday Home by Thingvallavatn, this project completed by Denmark and Iceland-based architecture practice KRADS has a special relationship with the surrounding nature. The studio collaborated closely with the clients, who are performing artists, to create the distinctive design. The process of de...

A brutalist house nestled in a rocky landscape on a Greek island. Built on a steep slope on the island of Kea, in the Cyclades archipelago, Greece, Diagonal House is a contemporary concrete dwelling that re-imagines the classic Greek stone architecture typology. The coastal landscape provided a source of inspiration for the

An intimate restaurant opened within the walls of an old carpentry workshop. Located in the town of Barr, France, an old building that used to house a carpentry workshop was transformed into a small restaurant. Strasbourg-based architecture studio nara completed this adaptive-reuse project with great respect for th...

A modern rustic design that re-imagines an old barn and farmhouse as a contemporary living space. Located in the village of Isola, Switzerland, Casa ME breathes new life into an old barn. Ruinelli Associati Architetti transformed the building completely to create a modern rustic living space. Apart from converting the agricultur...

An angular house with sloping roofs that hide solar panels. Located in the village of Eelderwolde, in the northern area of the Netherlands, Villa K2 makes a lasting impression with its minimalist, angular design that nevertheless complements classic gabled dwellings that surround it. Architecture firm Francois ...

An elongated one-story volume built in the countryside in the Cezch Republic. Located in the countryside, on the outskirts of the town of Kostelec nad Ohří, Czech Republic, the Kostelec Residence is a large residential complex that balances its size and impressive scope with a minimalist design. Architecture fir...

A house transformed with re-inhabited voids and a closer connection to nature. Located at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac in Atherton San Mateo County, California, this house is surrounded by mature oaks and grass. The design, although beautiful and representative of an era before the city underwent rapid growth, requ...

Hotel rooms built inside a sloped terrain with a cantilevered design that maximizes views. Built on top of a hill as part of the Øynaparken estate, the Øyna Hotel expands the existing restaurant and event spaces with cozy rooms that also offer spectacular views. Architecture firm Green Advisers AS designed the retreat with a creative layout that maximizes the connection to nature. The...

A beautiful mountain cottage that blends into the landscape with its dark wooden cladding and green roof. Built on a steep slope in the small town of Sutton, Quebec, this mountain cottage makes the most of the setting with an ingenious design. At the same time, the cabin blends into the landscape thanks to clever features. The...

A brutalist house designed with a range of creative details. Dating back to the 1960s, this building in the town of Ivrea, Italy, was completely transformed by architecture firm Archisbang. An excellent example of how stunning brutalist architecture can be, the volume now features a simple rectangular form with asymmet...

[dropcap]A[/dropcap] house with a terrace that opens to nature can do wonders for one’s well-being. For cities, even a balcony or a small corner of greenery inside an apartment will suffice. We want to talk about houses designed with one or more patios and courtyards that connect living spaces to glorious natural landscapes, gardens, and even urban jungles. Homes and summer retreats where terra...

A creatively designed house with a central courtyard that houses a tree. Built on the outskirts of the city of Morelia, Mexico, UC House features an ingenious and thoughtful design that establishes a spatial ambiguity between indoor and outdoor spaces. Daniela Bucio Sistos // Taller de Arquitectura y Diseño created the ...