Clifftop House

The house for a windsurf sail designer and his family, designed by Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti in Maui, defines several mini-houses under a common roof, that frame the perfect ocean view.

Maui south coast is gentle and works for indulging all–inclusive holidays, whereas its north coast is a rough surfer’s paradise with strong winds and most important perfect waves.

Windsurf sail designer Robert Stroj moves from Europe to Maui to lead the design research studio of Neil Pryde in Kahului, Maui. While exploring the island with his wife, they soon fell in love with the area of West Maui Mountains on the north coast; very unpopulated area with high cliffs at the cost, fresh onshore breeze and undisrupted view to the ocean.

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii. Top: terrace deck and roof deck – shading provides natural cooling effect. Above: back view of the whole house, garage now converted into a sail workshop

After finding the perfect spot it took them three years to buy the land and several more to finish the house. Now they live there with their two sons and a dog. The home in such an environment becomes crucially important. Besides being just a home, this house works also as a social venue for the owners. The evening events are culinary blasts, where every guest realizes that cooking is not just necessity but more an obsession. Therefore the kitchen and the dining form the centre of the house.

Perfect ocean view, beautiful cliffs, strong winds and unspoiled rough landscape. Is there any space for a house? It was a very unusual task for the European architects, usually dealing with quite dense urban environment. It was hard to understand before its first visit and easy to respond after some days spent there. The concept defines several “houses” under a common roof. Each separate “mini house” is an U–shaped volume in order to open up and frame the perfect ocean view. The houses are self-contained private units combining bedroom and bathroom as en-suite double room. A fluid public space between enclosed private volumes serves for cooking, eating, lounging...

The ensured privacy within the separate houses allows for a home without hallways and furthermore for a continuous social and typological change: four–person family home can be easily transformed into a mini hotel for 3 couples or 3 families with small children. The spatial concept even allowed the transformation of both “service houses” into a workspace: the garage into a sail loft – workshop for sail prototypes and the utility into Robert’s ocean view design studio.

The roof concept is strongly related to the rough climate with plenty of sun and strong ocean winds. The area of the roof is twice the size of the house, so the size of the covered outdoor space equals the size of the indoor space.

The house needs no air-conditioning, since it is cross ventilated throughout. The folded roof is carefully attached to the walls of U–shaped volumes and defines specific spaces. It also serves as a folded wooden deck for contemplating, playing or releasing the radio controlled flying wings, with the aim to materially and topologically integrate the house with the landscape.

The local materials are used for the finishing of the house. The walls are rendered with the specific plaster using beach sand inside and outside and furthermore emphasize the smooth indoor–outdoor relationship. The same IPE wood is used for the floor, terrace, ceiling and even the roof. On the other hand the house is for US standards atypically constructed out of concrete blocks, which just reflects the European origin of the owner.

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Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, north view of the house, the car access

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, swinging from the roof – back side

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, daytime views from the roof

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, north-eastern exterior view

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, northern view of the whole house

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, nightfall views from the roof

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, folded wooden deck topologically integrated with the landscape

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, night north side view

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, living area

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, aerial view

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii. Photo Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii. Photo Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii. Photo Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, structural model

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, roof structure as laminated beams

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Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, axonometric scheme

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Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, elevation

maui_floorplan_streha_osi

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, floor plan

maui_floorplan_streha_osi

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, roof plan

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Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, sections

Lokacija_1_3000

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, siteplan

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, sketches

Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti, Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii, sketch

Clifftop House, Maui, Hawaii
Program: residential
Architects: Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti
Client: Robert & Drazena Stroj
Site area: 10.000 sqm
Build up area: 450 sqm
Completion: 2011

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Clifftop House

The house for a windsurf sail designer and his family, designed by Dekleva Gregorič Arhitekti in Maui, defines several mini-houses under a common roof, that frame the perfect ocean view.

A house turns its back on the road to open up to the landscape

maui_aksonometrija_popravljene sheme

maui_elevation

maui_floorplan_streha_osi

maui_floorplan_streha_osi

maui_sections

Lokacija_1_3000

For a new ecology of living

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