West Texas Retreat
Set against the rugged backdrop of West Texas, this renovation transforms a simple home into a serene retreat immersed in mountain and sky. Expansive glazing captures shifting light and distant peaks, while covered outdoor spaces invite connection to the land’s quiet rhythms. Warm wood ceilings and natural stone finishes echo the desert palette, creating a refuge for reflection and renewal. Designed as an escape from the city, the home celebrates its setting while offering a place to slow down, breathe deeply, and watch the horizon fade into starlit night.
Location
Alpine, Texas
Design Team
Joe Rivers and Kevin Barden
Renderings
WAL Studio
Typology
Residential
Date
2017
Process
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Port Bolivar Beach House
Port Bolivar, Texas
Residential
Situated above the shoreline in a Gulf Coast community, this elevated beach house offers a restful retreat shaped by light, breeze, and expansive views. Drawing from the local tradition of stilt-frame wood construction, the design lifts the main living level to capture sun, breeze, and shade throughout the day while providing shelter below.
Heath West
Painter
Art and Design
In this episode, our resident architects Joe Rivers and Kevin Barden visit with Heath West, a painter from Los Angeles, California. Heath is painter with an extensive background in architecture, a subject he pursued and worked in professionally for several years before returning to his original love of art and painting. Before his recent relocation from Houston, Texas to Los Angeles, California, Heath sat down with Kevin and Joe to discuss the influence of architecture in his work and his particular approach to painting.
Site Dwelling Competition
Joe Rivers and Kevin Barden
Competitions
“The Site Dwelling, located on the cliff of the bay, in the village of Salir do Porto, aims to create a secluded destination, a place of retreat to engage with the landscape while providing shelter from the natural elements. This is a place to stay and inhabit for a few days, offering visitors a unique experience in a very special setting; visitors must leave the space as they found it, empty.” Rivers Barden Architects was…