Three-Piece House

Situated on a rare 36-foot-wide vacant lot on a quiet side street in South Philadelphia, this 3-story house borrows its organizational idea from principals of the ‘piano nobile’ or noble floor. The main spaces of the house, including the kitchen, dining room, and living room, are elevated above the street level to the second floor. It is here that the lush interior winter garden punctuates the otherwise open plan, borrowing light from the floor-to-ceiling windows on the north and south faces of the building. On the elevation, the second floor fenestration is contrasted above and below by the private, inverted spaces of the first and third floors – a studio workspace and courtyard on the first floor, and bedroom spaces of the third floor. A private roof deck finishes the elevation and offers intimate views of the City. The exterior is clad in a palette of cypress wood siding treated two ways, brushed ‘shou-sugi-ban’ and natural with clear coating. Photography: Halkin Mason Photography