The terrain and natural boulder formations of a rocky desert plateau overlooking California’s Coachella Valley have served as the inspiration, staging ground, and defining framework of the 3,100-square-foot custom home High Desert Retreat. The home’s footprint forms a hairpin shape inside the site’s natural borders, drawing both form and function from the surrounding environment.
“For the first site analysis visit, the design team camped out for 24 hours on the undeveloped site to understand where the house should be sited, what rooms would gravitate toward the openness or intimacy the site provided, what areas of each room would have operable windows and doors based on the prevailing wind patterns, and what areas needed larger overhangs than others for solar protection,” says Adam Rouse, senior associate at Aidlin Darling Design. “All of this was underpinned by the succinct goal of working around all of the ancient pinyon pine trees and rock formations on the site, nestling the home in to become integral with the landscape.”
The entrance path from the detached garage is bordered by the home’s dual concrete anchor walls, which lead to a series of rectilinear, wood-clad forms under a floating roof pane. In response to the client’s request for “robust materiality” on the exterior, Aidlin Darling Design specified charred shou sugi ban acetylated wood siding, which carries a 50-year warranty and a protective coating produced through the charring process.
From here, the home is split into seven volumes, with the entryway and dining room as central open spaces and bedrooms fanning out from the living room and kitchen to either side. The roof pane extends over the pool’s surface, with a single open aperture for sun exposure.
“This project is a direct product of its place,” says Rouse. “The strategies employed, and architectural language and layout implemented, were in direct response to the elements innate in the site. As is the goal with all of our architecture, each project would not make sense, or even function properly, if sited anywhere else.”
The home is designed to be as self-sufficient as possible, due to its remote location and limited utility access. To compensate for electricity interruptions during weather events, a 15kW solar array and battery storage can accommodate up to 75% of demand on peak days, and 100% in shoulder season conditions. Two 5,000-gallon water tanks are stored behind the garage, both to maintain pressure in the plumbing system and to provide potable water during outages.
Large, operable windows and doors enable adjustable passive cooling in all rooms of the home, with additional evaporative cooling provided off the surface of the pool. “The effect of being inside in the protected shade with a breeze coming through the house at 85 degrees Fahrenheit is just as physically comfortable as a hermetically sealed home air conditioned to 70 degrees,” Rouse says. “The former requires no energy, only thoughtful overhangs and cross ventilation. Luckily, as the project hugs a ridgeline, there is no lack of breeze to work with at all times of day.”
