Geodesic Dome Renovation
This renovation transforms a 1980s geodesic dome, originally conceived during the height of the energy crisis, into a bright, connected, and contemporary home. A new primary suite frames views of the surrounding forest, while an open kitchen maintains visual and acoustic connection to the living and dining areas. Fresh finishes throughout renew the interior without erasing its character. Designed decades ago as a “cabin in the woods” close to the city, the original home reflected its owners’ commitment to energy conservation and forward-thinking design. In updating it, the challenge was clear: How can something new honor and love what’s old? How can the essence of a place be carried forward without losing what makes it special?
Location
Minnetonka, Minnesota
Design Team
Kevin Barden and Joe Rivers
Typology
Residential
Date
2022-2024
Interior Design
I/O Design Office
Structural Engineering
Larsen Engineering
General Contractor
Sexton and Associates
Photography
Leonid Furmansky
Process
Explore
Albert Cabin
Albert, Texas
Residential
Stepping through the stone wall portal marks a threshold from city life to the quiet rhythms of the Texas Hill Country. The cabin’s warm wood interiors and expansive glazing open to the surrounding oaks and sky. In the mornings, the southeast-facing bath welcomes the first light; in the evenings, the southwest-facing bedroom frames sunsets and starlit skies.
Roz Jones
Fit Lifestyle Innovator
Culture and Community
Roz Jones is the face and name behind Roz Fit. Life. Style. A fitness and lifestyle company based in Houston, Texas. Joe and Kevin sat down with Roz to discuss her beginnings in fitness, the launching of her brand and travel program, and her perspective as a fitness professional.
Immersive Tools
Kevin Barden
Writing
At a time when artificial intelligence and digital tools dominate discussions of architectural education, the practice of making large-scale physical models serves as an ever more important tool for the development of a student’s creative voice, sense of discovery, and long-term learning. Through an understanding of temporal and spatial kairotic environments and an iterative process these large-scale physical models possess the potential to embody experiential qualities in a meaningful manner.