Twin Lakes, CO

From the client:

“We have worked with Morgan Law and team at Shape Architecture Studio since March 2021 to design a modest footprint net zero home on a ridge above Twin Lakes in Lake County, Colorado. Since the inception of our project, we have had a really wonderful experience. Morgan and colleagues took our priorities and preferences to heart, and contemplated a unique design that expertly addressed our various competing requests. Our desires to tread lightly on the landscape and preserve natural ground cover, maximize views in multiple directions, be simultaneously moderate and impactful in design aesthetic but not austere, integrate passive optimization of sunlight and shade to minimize energy use, introduced a myriad of balancing acts for Shape to navigate. They worked seamlessly with the engineering team and our general contractor, and maintained a consistently positive and collaborative spirit. In particular, we appreciated moments of strong voice and opinion on the virtues of one design choice versus another, and these led to a much better outcome than if we had tried to decide every detail ourselves."

Situated on a hillside overlooking Twin Lakes, this modest mountain retreat utilizes the steep landscape to take advantage of the views towards the collegiate peaks. Cognizant of the impact that the building will have on the site, the house is elevated to minimize site disturbances while creating a unique experience of a home expanding into nature.

The design of the house is broken up into two volumes: a gathering volume with an expansive deck that projects into the landscape, and a dwelling volume with individual bedrooms and a lofted space. The dwelling volume has a sloped roof facing the South equipped with solar panels. The gathering volume slopes the opposite direction to maximize the views towards the mountains. Careful considerations of energy consumption was a crucial factor in the design process to create a home that is both highly efficient and elegant.

Photography by Parrish Ruiz De Velasco.