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MORPHOSIS

Sixth Street House

Between Venice and Santa Monica

A duplex in Santa Monica is remodeled as a two bedroom house and a one bedroom apartment. The apartment is located on the ground floor. while the house takes up its upper levels. The bedrooms of the house are on the second floor, while the third level accomodates a living/dining area, a kitchen and a studio, all contained in one 24 foot high space.

The main living space of the house is meant to recreate the loft in which the owner formerly lived. The architecture of the house is an attempt to address the surrounding, the conflicting demands for privacy and connection to society through contemporary archeology and the use of found objects. The foundation, perimeter walls, and floors of the existing duplex are reused. The wood frame, lath and cement compositionboard structure of the renovation will remain uncovered. Ten fabricated steel pieces, made up of found parts of machinery, have been inserted in the living space. These are the functional objects, they are made into structure, stairs, a shower, skylights and other utilitarian elements, each piece performs several functions at the same time. While the exterior of the house is contextual and traditional, and thus protects the private world of the interior with a facade of formality, the "dead tech" pieces on the inside import a technological world into the very heart of the house.