Sitting atop the hills just outside of Hudson, NY, Twisted Ridge is a family home and guest house designed by The Up Studio. The property is an 11 acre site overlooking the Catskill Mountains, but while large parcels of land can create the feeling of endless possibilities, the site’s zoning constraints limited the placement of the structure. The property had minimal clearing, wetlands that required a certain setback, and zoning setbacks. When overlaid, there was only a quarter acre available for the placement of the home.
Fortunately, the location, which is close to the edge of the property, was favorable to one of the main design concepts: capturing as much of the mountain views as possible. All three of the bedrooms on the second floor of the main residence, as well as the gathering spaces of both the main residence and guest house are oriented exactly due west towards views of the mountains. Floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors and large windows throughout the home frame the vistas, invite light into the space, and bring mountain energy into the family’s daily life.
Another main design element of Twisted Ridge is the geometric placement of the family home in relation to the guest house. We chose to separate the guest wing, an ADU, from the main house. Shifting the back the ADU maintains privacy for both the family and guests, as well as creates an edge condition. The courtyard houses a pool and hot tub at the opposite corner, while at the center of the geometry, a fire pit offers an opportunity for the family and their guests to gather together.
The sunken courtyard features a special detail: it is flanked by walls made with gabion baskets filled with shale discovered on site during the building process. Rather than discarding this beautiful material, we collaborated with Bayview Landscape Architecture to repurpose it in a way that grounds the courtyard in its natural surroundings.
The final main design concept—a unique, defining feature of the home—is the roof. We took the traditional A-frame and twisted it. Due to the amount of snowfall in the area, a pitched roof is most effective as it allows snow to easily slide off during inclement weather. The twisted roofs also create more surface area for future solar panel installation. Lastly, the undulating geometry calls back to the surrounding mountains, poetically reflecting the landscape in the home.
