kinseyarchitecture

The program was for a three bedroom, three bath residence with a two car garage and a detached guesthouse. The challenge of the design was the 13 ft. slope across the site, limited views, and the scale of the building in an existing neighborhood on a highly visible corner lot. The solution arrived at with the client, was to tuck the guesthouse under the main house, built into the natural slope of the lot, thereby giving the main house on the second floor incredible views of downtown Santa Fe and the mountains, that it would otherwise not have had.

The success and strength of this design is in its exceptional massing, which diminishes its actual size, in conjunction with it being built into the site, versus being simply placed on the site.

The guesthouse, although underneath the main house, has natural light in every room and one would never guess that it is built right into the site. The guest house has its own kitchen and can function as a mother-in-law suit, office, or rental unit.