Project Synopsis
The KENNEDY HOUSE is the permanent home for a native north Louisiana artist and is situated on sloping pastureland near the township of Calhoun, Louisiana. The 1580 square foot residence locates discrete living and studio spaces under one roof, and offers the artist-resident a landscape characteristic of the rural south. The design interprets local culture in its vernacular references, traditional building strategies, and use of customary materials. In this regard, it emulates a recognizable figure on the regional landscape—while it is pragmatic, it is also poetic.
The split-function nature of the program is modeled in plan after the Louisiana dog-trot house, and in elevation after the traditional double-crib barn. The dog-trot opening is bisected by a linear promenade which separates the living area from the studio, and extends the front porch through the center and out into the landscape. This extension is terminated by a freestanding chimney. While evoking the image of a vernacular ruin, the chimney also defines a place for customary ritual by serving as a barbecue pit and crawfish boiler. The principal structure of the house reflects building strategies characteristic to a warm humid southern climate. It is raised off the ground, incorporates broad overhangs, and is naturally ventilated. Malarial concerns for local precedent and regional availability are addressed with the use of metal siding and roofing, concrete block, and standardized framing lumber.
The design scheme compliments the lifestyle of a north Louisiana artist and patron of the colloquial landscape. It is conceived in section as well as plan, and organized into three levels. The ground level incorporates exterior pathways that extend the composition of the plan into the landscape, situate the structure into the hillside, and refer directionally to natural site features. The program at this level includes spaces for automotive and equipment repair, yard work, storage, and utilities. The symmetrically proportioned first level characterizes the local precedent of the dog-trot plan and addresses programmatic concerns for separate studio and living spaces. North windows orient the spaces away from the highway and towards the natural landscape. The circular kitchen, poised alongside the living space, elicits images of a water tank or silo and alludes to the nature of subsistence. The upper level reconnects the living and studio spaces and provides a secluded respite from daily activities. North skylights offer views of the natural landscape, ventilate the interior, and provide a constant light suitable to the observing eye of a painter. The twofold nature of the KENNEDY HOUSE suggests a lifestyle in which living and art are of equal value—in which a balance between the two is an existential necessity.
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