River Oaks Renovation
Originally built in the 1990s, this River Oaks home renovation seeks to take advantage of the existing spacious layout by maximizing daylighting opportunities as well as allowing for ample indoor-outdoor living. The result is a light-filled home where comfort and elegance is prioritized.
Location
Houston, Texas
Design Team
Joe Rivers and Kevin Barden
Typology
Residential
Interior Design
Letecia Ellis Haywood Interior Design
General Contractor
Sims Luxury Builders
Photography
Rachel Alyse Photography
Publication
Modern Luxury Interiors Texas: May, 2023
Process
Explore
Geodesic Dome Renovation
Minnetonka, Minnesota
Residential
This renovation of a geodesic dome home includes a new primary suite and bedroom with a view of the forest; a new kitchen with lines of sight and sound to the living and dining areas; as well as new finishes throughout. The home was originally designed and built at the height of the energy crisis in the early 1980s. At the time, the homeowners wanted a “cabin in the woods” close to the city as well as a forward-thinking home that clearly took a position on energy conservation.
Marcus Martinez
Illustrator, Urban Designer, & Educator
Art and Design
Marcus Martinez is a Houston-based Illustrator whose work has reached beyond architecture into diverse areas such as design, medical technology, and urbanism. Joe and Kevin sat down with Marcus to discuss his early influences and experiences in architecture and design, his sketching process, and what excites him about his work as an illustrator.
Ethos
Kevin Barden and Joe Rivers
Writing
In an essay entitled The Hedgehog and the Fox, Isaiah Berlin quotes the Greek poet Archilochus, “The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing” (Berlin 7). The essay was written as a commentary on Leo Tolstoy’s view of history, however, the text can offer an understanding for how one might practice architecture as well. For us, this understanding reveals itself in perceiving the environment as a fox and believing in it as a hedgehog.