Des Moines, Iowa, USA
The Mevorach Studio of Yorame Mevorach and Katya Gibel Mevorach by substance architecture is an addition to a Victorian-style house built in 1883 in the Sherman Hill neighborhood in Des Moines, Iowa, that integrates into the historic neighborhood on the basis of contrast, conserving a relationship of scale and alignments to the existing house without reproducing historic details or materials.
The Mevorach Studio has recently been awarded a 2023 International Architecture Award, by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
The addition is situated northeast of the existing house with a direct relationship to the street and the open green space of Hoyt Sherman Place.
To the east, a new driveway allows parking and vehicular access to the lot.
To the west, the studio space extends out creating a new patio.
The front of the house remains unchanged.
A concrete wall contours the new addition space following the slope and emerging at the patio space.
The structure is then made of timber with glulam beams running north-south to cover the large span.
The façade is closed to all sides apart from the walls touching the existing house, where large openings are placed.
The closed façade is finished of composite wood panels while the open façade presents glass and aluminum metal panels at the top.
At the corners of the building facing the street and Hoyt Sherman Place, the walls are interrupted by a light installation designed by the owner.
Created with LED screens recessed and angled into the walls; it creates the illusion of a missing wall.
The light feature runs constantly for 24 hours, with moving fractional images of abstract and realistic nature.
The façade is demountable at the corners to allow for regular maintenance work.
Project: Mevorach Studio
Architects: substance architecture
General Contractor: Holcomb Corporation
Clients: Yorame Mevorach and Katya Gibel Mevorach
Photographers: Corey Gaffer, Paul Crosby, and Jeff Wagner
