C-House by Robert Maschke Architects

Architects: Robert Maschke Architects
Location: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
Year: 2008
Photo courtesy: Eric Hanson
Description:

C-House is one of three urban villas comprising the Residences of King’s Hill, a unique residential development located on Cleveland’s near west side. Despite being situated within the urban context of the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood, this “virgin” site provides an idyllic enclave within a park-like setting, adjacent to the site’s eastern and southern boundaries. Uninterrupted views of Lake Erie, Cleveland’s downtown and industrial flats, as well as the site’s proximity to a busy vehicular thoroughfare reconnect the site to its urban environment.

The architecture of the C-House capitalizes on the inherent contrasts embedded in the site. Program is stacked giving all living spaces access to dramatic views. This sectional strategy produces a cantilever whose effect is not only formal intrigue, but provides shelter for the exterior space below. Fenestration is arranged opportunistically to frame views. The resulting composition differs in opacity at each elevation suggesting a varied outward disposition to its surroundings.

Nested into the hillside, the monolithic form and white materiality of the C-House are utilized to give the architecture with a sense of otherness from the landscape. The presence of the C-House elicits a substantive and billboard-like quality to the architecture, an unexpected and iconic presence for commuters between Cleveland’s downtown and western suburbs.