Frame House by Mork-Ulnes Architects

_project: Frame House
_architecture: Mork-Ulnes Architects
_location: California, USA

Architecture has long negotiated the balance between exposure and shelter. From early modernist experiments to contemporary environmental design, the house has acted as a testing ground for how structure frames landscape, how glass mediates climate, and how space shapes daily rituals. Within the legacy of California Modernism, rational grids, slender columns, deep overhangs, and expansive glazing dissolved the boundary between interior and exterior. Revisiting this tradition today requires more than formal reference, it calls for environmental intelligence, resilience, and a renewed sensitivity to atmosphere.

Located in Sonoma County, Frame House by Mork-Ulnes Architects reinterprets West Coast modernism through a contemporary and environmentally responsive lens. Drawing inspiration from architects such as Pierre Koenig, Richard Neutra, and Gregory Ain, the project combines structural clarity with climatic awareness, addressing the realities of wildfire-prone Northern California.

The house is organized on a rigorous rectangular grid and articulated by a rhythmic column system. At its center, a deep loggia operates as both spatial hinge and environmental buffer. Within this framework, solid walls alternate with expansive glass openings, establishing a calibrated dialogue between protection and openness. A fully glazed northern façade captures panoramic views toward Manzanita Canyon, while deep concrete overhangs and timber decks extend the living areas outward, reinforcing the continuity between house and landscape.

On the ground level, kitchen, dining, and living areas are arranged as a continuous social space connected to east and west terraces through operable glass walls. Above, four bedrooms are positioned around a double-height void crossed by a catwalk, maintaining visual connection while preserving privacy. The spatial composition relies on proportion, light, and structural rhythm rather than gesture.

Material choices anchor the house in its context. A concrete shell wrapped in western red cedar references Sonoma’s agrarian vernacular and softens the geometric frame. Interiors combine bleached Douglas fir and polished concrete floors, creating a precise yet warm atmosphere.

Beyond its formal qualities, Frame House integrates wildfire-resilient construction, passive shading, cross-ventilation, radiant heating, and an onsite photovoltaic system with battery backup. As captured in the film by Juan Benavides and through the photography of Bruce Damonte, the project becomes a composed study of light, structure, and landscape, an architecture that frames experience as carefully as it frames views.

_article written by Daniela Moreira da Silva
_film by Juan Benavides
_photos by Bruce Damonte
_film curatorship by Architecture Hunter