Prentiss Balance Wickline Architects: Built on 20 acres of working ranch property, the Wandling residence mixes elegant design with Methow practicality. The site could not be more splendid, with gorgeous views of distant mountains, close-in wildflower-clad hills, and… Cows!
The house layout consists of two roughly equivalent rectangular, corrugated metal-clad volumes. One accommodates a couple’s day to day life with kitchen/living/dining spaces and a master suite, while the other houses guest bedrooms for grown children and a garage. The two shed-roofed wings are tied together by a flat-roofed connector piece, containing the entry and utility room.
The house is oriented to maximize views in almost every direction and create outdoor rooms that offer varying degrees of protection from sun, rain and wind, depending on season and time of day. Rustic steel at the exterior gives way to serene, muted interior finishes in shades of white and gray. A plywood soffit at both interior and exterior ties interior and exterior together.
Although the house is simple in form, clever details, such as the steel “feet” at the doubled glulam columns, and tactile materials, such as steel and plywood, lend scale and interest. The white walls of the interior provide a backdrop for a collection of large and colorful paintings.
