View of Macintosh computer ray-tracing of VIDI
model looking north. The house, which will be built in pumicecrete,
features several Trombe walls and an interior courtyard with solarium.
The rich complexity of the house does not limit the scope of passive
solar elements. The Great Room (under the large blue roof) has
a solarium on the south and an array of large low-E windows on
the north that face a spectacular view of the 600 foot deep Rio
Grande Gorge and a mountain panorama spanning from Wheeler Peak
(to the east) to Mt. Antonito (to the northwest). The courtyard
provides an wind-sheltered outdoor micro-climate extension of
the Great Room. Each functional space of the house is contained
in a different polygon (from 4-sided to 9-sided) and all polygon
sides equal 12 feet resulting in a variety of square foot areas
that match the space needs of the client.