First Office
First Office
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Encinitas ADU

First Office

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Location: Encinitas, CA, USA

Years: 2020-2022

Architects: First Office, Anna Neimark and Andrew Atwood. Team: Robert Sipchen, Sota Kanzan, Adam Cutts

Models: Frank Yang, Aram Radfar

Structural Engineer: Mike Martinez

Contractor: Todd Messenger Construction

Building Photographs: David Harrison

Model Photographs: Frank Yang, Aram Radfar

First Office

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First Office

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The house is on the front of a rural lot in San Diego County, California. The site is oriented north-south and backed by a vegetated hill on the south and west sides. There is a mountain view toward the northeast. The house has two parts. A triangular part aligns with the vegetated hill and houses the bedroom spaces. A rectangular part faces the mountains and houses the living, dining, and kitchen spaces. The two parts are divided by a central spine, which houses bathrooms and closets. Additional cabinets and closets separate the spaces within each part. An entertainment cabinet divides the living and dining spaces. A large counter cabinet divides the dining and kitchen spaces. A closet divides the two bedrooms. The roof is intentionally unresolved. Its two sloping parts never share an edge or a plane, passing by each other on top of the house’s spine.

First Office
First Office
First Office

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First Office
First Office

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First Office
First Office

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First Office
First Office

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Site: Mr. Wren & Friends.  Logo and La Grotesque typeface by Francesca Bolognini

First Office was founded in 2011 by Anna Neimark and Andrew Atwood to create a dialog between architectural practice and academic discourse. Their collaborative work spans buildings, exhibitions, and publications, all rooted in the belief that architecture is a form of cultural production.

The practice has engaged with leading institutions, including the MAK Center for Art and Architecture, the Chicago and Venice Biennials, MoMA PS1’s Young Architects Program, and the Architectural League of New York. The projects and essays of First Office have been recognized with awards and compiled in Nine Essays (Treatise Press, 2015), as well as in Andrew’s publication Not Interesting: On the Limits of Criticism in Architecture (Applied Research and Design, 2017).

Anna Neimark
Design Faculty and Visual Studies Coordinator, SCI-Arc
anna.neimark@gmail.com

Andrew Atwood
Licensed Architect and Associate Professor, UC Berkeley
w.andrew.atwood@gmail.com

About

First Office was founded in 2011 by Anna Neimark and Andrew Atwood to create a dialog between architectural practice and academic discourse. Their collaborative work spans buildings, exhibitions, and publications, all rooted in the belief that architecture is a form of cultural production.

The practice has engaged with leading institutions, including the MAK Center for Art and Architecture, the Chicago and Venice Biennials, MoMA PS1’s Young Architects Program, and the Architectural League of New York. The projects and essays of First Office have been recognized with awards and compiled in Nine Essays (Treatise Press, 2015), as well as in Andrew’s publication Not Interesting: On the Limits of Criticism in Architecture (Applied Research and Design, 2017).

Anna Neimark
Design Faculty and Visual Studies Coordinator, SCI-Arc
anna.neimark@gmail.com

Andrew Atwood
Licensed Architect and Associate Professor, UC Berkeley
w.andrew.atwood@gmail.com

Site: Mr. Wren & Friends.  Logo and La Grotesque typeface by Francesca Bolognini