Belgrade Lakes House
PROJECT TAGS
LOCATION
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
STRUCTURAL ARCHITECTS
BUILDER
PHOTOGRAPHY
Project Team
A modern lakeside house that embraces the landscape.
A modern lakeside house that embraces the landscape.
Integration with Site’s Natural Slope
- Connection to the Environment: The design must feel connected to the woods and water, and work with the slope of the site rather than reforming it.
- Preservation of Natural Features: The massive boulders on the site must be preserved, with the home situated to nest among them rather than blasting them away.
- Inverted Plan Design: The main entry of the house should be on the second floor at grade on the uphill side, with primary living spaces on the lower level pushed forward toward the lake.
- Integration with Topography: The lower roofs should be planted and extended back into the hillside, making the house appear to emerge from the landscape.
- Seamless Indoor-Outdoor Flow: Primary living spaces must flow outside with a single step, providing lake views under the canopy of the trees.
- Daylight Maximization: A tall, glazed stairwell should link the two levels and flood daylight into the rear spaces nested into the hillside.
Blending with the Landscape
The design incorporated planted roofs on the lower levels to extend back into the hillside, further integrating the house with the topography. The materials chosen were intended to blend the structure with its surroundings, giving the impression that the house is emerging naturally from the landscape, rather than being imposed upon it.
Concepts That Make a Difference
The inverted plan has the main entry of the house on the second floor, just at grade on the uphill side, and the primary living spaces on the lower level. These are pushed forward toward the lake so that they sit low on the ground and flow outside with a single step, with lake views under the canopy of the trees.
A tall, glazed stairwell links the two levels together and floods daylight into the rear spaces that are nested into the hillside. To further blend the house into the topography, all of the lower roofs are planted and extended back into the hillside so that the house appears to be emerging from the landscape, rather than piled on top of it.
Working With a Steep and Rocky Site
On this steep sloping and rocky site along a pond in the Belgrade Lakes region of Maine, the challenge was to create something that felt connected to the woods and water and that works into the slope of the site rather than reforming it.
Everywhere about the site are massive boulders, left by receding glaciers thousands of years ago and now covered with moss and ferns. Instead of blasting them into pieces and hauling them away, the home was situated to nest among them and look into them.
The Results
The completed home successfully integrates with its steep, boulder-strewn site, creating a harmonious retreat that feels deeply connected to its natural surroundings. The inverted plan and planted roofs enhance the sense of the house emerging from the landscape, providing serene lake views and a seamless indoor-outdoor flow that respects the environment.
